The Storyteller | Mary Vee

Sometimes old news is new news. Today I want to share with you news that only this week came to my attention. My research led me to the original article published in The Atlantic on October 22, 2013.  This is a tale of two cities.  That do not exist in pages written by Charles Dickens. Viganella, Italy  and Rjukan, Norway  are small cities located in valleys surrounded by mountains. Although located far from each other, they suffered the same problem. Up to six months of the year, both receive very little sunlight.  While many global cities rest in valleys, Viganella and Rijukan are swaddled by the Alps and Galdhøpiggen mountains respectively. These giant mountains shield the valley below from precious sunlight. If I were to visit either quaint city, I would only do so during the six months of sunlight. I really dislike the dark. And so did the residents. The word did is very important. Like a Hans Chris...

Photo Courtesy Link In our everyday life, problems pop up. They aren't always something big. Maybe something that tweaks our agitation for a nano second before a solution strikes us. Like:  Why was the peanut butter in the fridge? How did the black sock end up in the white laundry batch? Where are my: glasses, car keys, charger, etc? These issues we are willing to tackle. No problem. Take the peanut butter out of the fridge. Don't panic when the white batch turns out fine. Search the house and car for missing item. But when it comes to thinking our way through problems, we are very quick to hit the Internet.  Can I just say, the Internet is not the all knowing Wizard of Oz?  There is a lot of misguided information on line and some of it is very difficult to detect...for even the knowledgeable person on the given topic.  Sure, I'll leap off the edge here for a moment. My economics teacher taught this prin...

Photo Courtesy Link The Hawaiian false alert from January 13th scared many islanders and raised fears reaching far across the ocean to the mainland. Throughout our growing up years generations are trained to regard warnings for every type of danger: Fasten your seatbelt Look both ways Duck and cover Seek shelter Stop. drop and roll Don't touch Stand tall and face a wild animal Run. Run fast from killer bees Don't put your hand in hidden areas where rattle snakes shelter Wash your hands Avoid hiking in washes Don't feed animals Do the lightning crouch Stay away from windows Hide in doorways Get away from buildings Stay in your car Seek high ground Alerts have been developed for cell phones: Amber Alert Silver Alert Blue Alert Gold Alert (do you know all of these alerts? I'm sure there are more) Hawaii's January 13, 2018 false missile attack alert lasted 38 minutes. Panic stricken men, women, and children had no clue wha...

Hubby and I saw the movie The Darkest Hour. It was nice to see all but a few seats hadn't been sold for our viewing. Surprising, since the movie released back in November. I was also happy to see the range of ages in the audience, from children to silver haired patrons. This is not a review of the movie. I understand there are some historical accuracies. In my research for this post, I found discrepancies between sites for the actual numbers. For this discussion, I am using numbers cited in the movie with the caveat these only represent the actual number. The time is May, 1940.  Newly elected prime minister, Winston Churchill's back was against the wall, as was the British army trapped on French shores with no transportation to return safely home. He couldn't rally help to save the men or obtain a supply of weapons to fight the war. The fleet had been destroyed.  He tried everything he could think of. The king and other influential people begged him to negotia...

While this is a new year, we should remember those who are hurting. I am one. Today, my post is very short because I will be at the funeral for my father-in-law.  Dr. Vee.  Dr. Vee led a life that holds an unbelievable history. If you would like to read a short summary that appeared in newspapers: Metro Detroit's medical community is mourning the death of Dr. Vainutis Kazimieras Vaitkevicius, a key physician in the creation of the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute and a compassionate leader in Michigan's oncology field.  Dr. Vaitkevicius  — known by patients and colleagues as "Dr. Vee" — died on Dec. 24, 2017, at Omega House Hospice in Houghton. He was 90. "Dr. Vee touched many lives," Patricia A. Ellis of the Karmanos Cancer Institute wrote in an email.  "He would not be one to boast about himself but, for me personally, he is so very deserving of us honoring him and celebrating the gifts he shared with all of us that will co...

photo by Mary Vee Winter has pillaged my neck of the woods.  Did you know that when temperatures dip sub zero it's too cold to snow? Snow is actually a sign that temperatures are warming. I'm an outdoor girl, but even these temps convinced me to hanker inside. The furnace has worked overtime duking it out with the sub zero temps outside and barely surviving. The thermostat, set for 65, hasn't eeked above 61 yet.  I say, in between chores, let's find a good book, a hot cup of coffee, hot chocolate, or tea, a comfy chair, and dive into a warmer place. If you need a suggestion, my holiday book, Anders' Redemption is available in paperback and ebook to read right now. This photo was sent to me from a reader. Seemed the best photo for today's post, don't you agree?  Here is the link:  Amazon An advantage to ebooks is you can buy them and read them within in minutes... and stay warm. This post has been brought...

It was a night to remember. A night to tell friends about. So I am... Fifty men, women, and teens rode in busses on icy expressways into the inner city. They poured out of the bus at a homeless shelter unsure where to go, what to do, or what to say. One led the pack through the main doors, pass security checkpoints, and on through winding hallways to a large room. At night, this room is filled, wall to wall, with cots, blankets, and at this time of year, cold homeless men, women, and children. On this evening before the night, hundreds of chairs formed straight rows and faced a platform.   The fifty set up sound and instrument equipment. Singers cozied in the limited platform space. Instrumentalists tuned their instruments.  A few residents poked their heads in the door. Intrigued, they came in and watched the first measures of several songs start, stop, start again. Microphone levels adjusted. The singers laughed. Chattered. The group stepped off to the side and...