Chatty Cathy, Shipwrecks and New Classes

Three days in a row with no where to go and no human voices in my life that weren’t coming out an electronic device, maybe I need a Chatty Cathy doll! She had eleven phrases when she first came out in 1959 but she didn’t say, “May I have a cookie?” I’d have to get the 1964 doll for that. I'm thinking if I fed all the cookies in the house to Chatty Cathy, it would keep me from getting fat when I feel like the last person on earth. Alas, all Chatty Cathy dolls were a bit needy, always saying things like: “Do you love me?” Tell me a story,” “Please brush my hair,” “Will you play with me?” “I’m hungry,” or “Please take me with you!” If Levi my Might Schnauzer had a pull-ring to make him talk, he’s say exactly the same things. He’s needy enough, so I guess I shouldn’t be doing an eBay search for Chatty-the-annoyingly-needy-doll.

Still, I want more laughter and hugs in my life and teddy bears are better for the latter than plastic dolls. I want a lot of things including world peace, purple socks and an answer to a question I heard Sunday in a song on the TV series, Chesapeake Shores: “If memories are all we have, does that mean that’s all we’ll ever be?” The guy singing the song was young and I’d tell him, “No, get out there and make more memories!” But somehow that advice doesn’t work as well for worn out people like me who have memories that are starting to fad like fabric left outside in a tropical sun. Sometimes my get-up-and-go gets up and leaves me behind!

Then Tuesday came along with a class in the morning and a lecture in the afternoon with only a scant hour in between to catch a quick lunch of Slim-Fast in the car. The class was billed as part exercise and part group discussion on balance and preventing falls as we age. Eight weeks, two hours each session, I guess it’s going to entail more than just telling us to get rid of our throw rugs, don't use ladders and to donate all our Crocs and flip-flops. Ya, I know that rule. It comes stamped on the back of our Social Security cards, doesn’t it? We all know that falls are the number one thing that puts seniors in hospitals and nursing homes. If the Old People Police come by, they’d ticket me for having three oriental throw rugs and fifteen pairs of Crocs. Note to Self: Don’t wear the latter on Tuesdays for the next seven weeks. The facilitator is the same one who facilitates The Gatherings at the senior hall so that’s a plus for this class of just twelve. We laughed a lot, set goals and shared stories about our falls and fears and we got a half-inch thick workbook of homework. 

The lecture was part of the ‘Life Enrichment’ series and it was about the Armistice Day Blizzard of 1940 that caused three massive freighters to sink off the shores of West Michigan within miles and hours of each other. The monster storm killed 273 people including 56 sailors. This is the third lecture I’ve seen featuring Valarie van Heest an underwater explorer, archaeologist and author. Never---even for a million dollars---would I want to go deep diving around shipwrecks but I don’t mind vicariously sucking the marrow out of Valerie’s adventures. She’s a great documentarian. This lecture was a fascinating collection of old news reels, photographs and underwater videos. One of the freighters was 420 feet long and is now an upside down, watery grave and the storm that put it there forever changed the way our nation’s weather is predicted. Can you imagine, that day the temperature dropped 40 degrees in a matter of minutes, with a 100 miles an hour winds and no one even knew a storm was coming because the weather bureau didn’t operate 24/7. She also showed photos of nearly a dozen other ice covered ships that were in extreme peril that day but didn’t sink and she told about the hardships of getting the sailors off those damaged ships. 

Note on the first presidential debate: Before the debate started I was wishing for a rare Cussing Chatty Cathy doll to keep me company. Yes, cussing as in swearing. They were made by Mantel in 1964 as gifts for their top salesman and executives. By the end of the debate I wanted, instead, a Celebration Barbie. My 'home team' won! No chance of finding a Cussing Cathy anyway but one time my husband found a rare Barbie doll for two or three dollars that he resold for nearly $1,000. After that, no matter where he found one---garage sale, flea market or antique shop---he’d be the macho guy undressing Barbie to look at the markings on her right buttock. The summer when I sold off so much of my husband’s stuff, I was not surprised to find three naked Barbie’s in a shoe box. Memories. Yes, in the end memories are “all that we’ll ever be.” At first those memories are painful for widows but in time they leave you with a smile on your face.  ©

Article written by Valarie about the 1940 Armistice Day Storm. 

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