Sunday, October 31, 2010

WHY WOMEN SHOULD VOTE.







The first suffrage picket line leaving the National Womans Party headquarters to march to the White House gates on January 10, 1917.
The first suffrage picket line leaving the National Woman's Party headquarters to march to the White House gates on January 10, 1917.
(The following written by Connie Schultz,
The Cleveland Plain Dealer)
This is the story of our grandmothers and great-grandmothers; they lived only 90 years ago.
Remember, it was not until 1920 that women were granted the right to go to the polls and vote.
The women were innocent and defenseless, but they were jailed nonetheless for picketing the White House, carrying signs asking for the vote.
Lucy Burns
Lucy Burns
By the end of the night, they were barely alive. Forty prison guards wielding clubs and their warden’s blessing went on a rampage against the 33 women wrongly convicted of
“obstructing sidewalk traffic.”
They beat Lucy Burns, chained her hands to the cell bars above her head, and left her hanging for the night, bleeding and gasping for air.
Dora Lewis
Dora Lewis
They hurled Dora Lewis into a dark cell, smashed her head against an iron bed, and knocked her out cold. Her cellmate, Alice Cosu, thought Lewis was dead and suffered a heart attack. Additional affidavits describe the guards grabbing, dragging, beating, choking, slamming, pinching, twisting, and kicking the women.
Thus unfolded the “Night of Terror” on Nov. 15, 1917, when the warden at the Occoquan Workhouse in Virginia ordered his guards to teach a lesson to the suffragists imprisoned there because they dared to picket Woodrow Wilson’s White House for the right
to vote.

For weeks, the women’s only water came from an open pail.
Their food — all of it colorless slop — was infested with worms.
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/suffrage/nwp/prisoners.pdf
Alice Paul
Alice Paul
When one of the leaders, Alice Paul, embarked on a hunger strike, they tied her to a chair, forced a tube down her throat and poured liquid into her until she vomited. She was tortured like this for weeks until word was smuggled out to the press.
So, refresh my memory. Some women won’t vote this year because — why, exactly? We have carpool duties? We have to get to work?
Our vote doesn’t matter? It’s raining?
Last week, I went to a sparsely attended screening of HBO’s new movie Iron Jawed Angels. It is a graphic depiction of the battle these women waged so that I could pull the curtain at the polling booth and have my say. I am ashamed to say I needed the reminder.
All these years later, voter registration is still my passion. But the actual act of voting had become less personal for me, more rote. Frankly, voting often felt more like an obligation than a privilege. Sometimes it was inconvenient.
My friend Wendy, who is my age and studied women’s history, saw the HBO movie, too. When she stopped by my desk to talk about it, she looked angry. She was — with herself. “One thought kept coming back to me as I watched that movie,” she said. “What would those women think of the way I use, or don’t use, my right to vote? All of us take it for granted now, not just younger women, but those of us who did seek to learn.” The right to vote, she said, had become valuable to her “all over again.”
HBO released the movie on video and DVD. I wish all history, social studies, and government teachers would include the movie in their curriculum. I want it shown on Bunco night, too, and anywhere else women gather. I realize this isn’t our usual idea of socializing, but we are not voting in the numbers that we should be and I think a little shock therapy is in order.
It is jarring to watch Woodrow Wilson and his cronies try to persuade a psychiatrist to declare Alice Paul insane so that she could be permanently institutionalized. And it is inspiring to watch the doctor refuse. Alice Paul was strong, he said, and brave. That didn’t make her crazy.
The doctor admonished the men: “Courage in women is often mistaken for insanity.”
Please, if you are so inclined, pass this on to all the women you know?
We need to get out and vote and use this right that was fought so hard for by these very courageous women.






If you have not seen the movie, Iron Jawed Angels, I urge you to
take the time to watch it.  It is on youtube, in 12 segments.
It is long but sooooo worth your time.
You will NEVER again pass up the chance to voice your opinion by VOTING!
See you in the booths on Tuesday!


Photobucket

Joining Mary at Little Red House for Mosaic Monday











































Saturday, October 30, 2010

Halloween Preparations

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Its a ....

♫♫*Beautiful day in the neighborhood, the neighborhood..." ♫♫

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We're getting ready for the family to visit after Sunday Mass.

Homemade waffles, bacon & eggs are on the menu.

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Coffee, tea & doughnuts, too! This guy looks a little squished.


Probably because THIS guy....



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was sitting on top of him in the box!


I'm sure they will both get eaten anyway.

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I tried to make Jack-O-Lantern faces on some orange colored Hostess Snowballs.

You can't poked things into them very easily. They're just too soft!

I had to use a cocktail fork to get to the sticky marshmallow centers


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This wasn't a huge success. They can't all be show-stoppers, I guess.

Knowing the grandkidlets, the chocolate covered raisins won't be on there

very long, anyway.

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We're hoping for a clear & starry night that isn't too cold or wet.

I made Caroline's Ariel costume & even made a flesh-colored long sleeved

top for her to wear under it, but she will need something warm

beneath that.



She wanted to be Ariel &


also asked if I could make her American girl doll a matching costume.

(modeled on my 18" Target doll who lives at my house)


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Hope you get lots of Treats & no Tricks at your house tomorrow!

Thanks for stopping by The Gazebo House & a special "thanks" to Yvonne at StoneGable for the idea of putting little pumpkins above the door. We've lived in this new house 5 years & I never even noticed that shelf up there.




Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Pumpkin Party Time!

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Put on your high-heeled sneakers &

come join in the fun...

Beth over at Food As Art is hosting her very first one!




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Party, that is, with PUMPKINS galore!

Some on the doorsteps & some on the floor.



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Some are just scattered all over,

...what a chore!






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The tables & chairs have been set with the theme.

All that is missing is hearing you scream!





Witchy Tablerunner, Blue

Even some witches have dressed for the day...

Witch Tablerunner

With *Bling* in their noses &


Witchy tablerunner, Orange


balls in the way.



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The colors keep changing in front of our eyes




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Keep watching....Don't blink...or you may get surprised!




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Tablerunner Pattern in September/October 2005 Fons and Porter's Love of Quilting magazine.




Halloween Birthday candles II


Creepy-crawlers abound & will make your skin shiver





Halloween Birthday candles III


Be grateful we're not serving ONIONS & LIVER!


Copy of Halloween Birthday spider in bowl IIHalloween Birthday carrots IIHalloween Birthday, skeleton in bowlCopy of Halloween birthday candy Halloween Birthday treats




Copy of Halloween Birthday eggs Copy of Halloween Birthday mummy dogs

The mummies are wrapped, all snug in their beds, while visions of sugarplums....

(oops, wrong holiday...)




Copy of Halloween Birthday heads



OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!!!


Halloween Birthday, face & centerpiece
Halloween Birthday, face


Thank you for stopping to see all our loot.

Now fly over to Beth's house...



Its gonna' be a hoot!



Rollo Pretzel Treats:

Spread out square pretzels in a single layer on cookie sheet.

Top each with an unwrapped Rollo caramel-chocolate candy.

Bake in 200° oven just until candy begins to soften.


Remove from oven & immediately top with either a nut

or another square pretzel.

Allow to cool.....if you can stand the wait!




My favorite way to eat pumpkin:

No Bake Double Layer Pumpkin Pie


(Kraft photo...I haven't made mine yet!)


1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

1 cup plus 1 Tbsp. milk, divided

1 Tbsp. sugar

1 tub (8 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed, divided

1 HONEY MAID Graham Pie Crust (6 oz.)

1 can (15 oz.) pumpkin

2 pkg. (3.4 oz. each) JELL-O Vanilla Flavor Instant Pudding

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 tsp. ground cloves


BEAT cream cheese, 1 Tbsp. milk and sugar in large bowl with whisk until blended.

Stir in half the COOL WHIP. Spread into crust.

WHISK remaining milk, pumpkin, pudding mixes and spices 2 min. (Mixture will be thick.)

Spread over cream cheese layer.

REFRIGERATE 4 hours or until set.

Top with remaining COOL WHIP just before serving.







I am also joining Marty for Tabletop Tuesday and Susan for Tablescape Thursday along with Michael Lee for Foodie Friday.