Book Review - Mary Wickes: I Know I've Seen That Face Before

 
I think I might write a monthly book review...just picking one...some months, like this one, I read or listen to quite a bit of books (well quite a bit for me). Other months, I may not even read or listen to a book.  

This month, I finished FOUR

1)  The Ghost and Mrs. Muir

2) Tomorrow, and Tomorrow and Tommorrow

3) Mary Wickes" I Know I've Seen That Face Before

4) Daisy Jones & The Six

I am selecting "Mary Wickes: I Know I've Seen That Face Before" by Steve Taravella.  The reason I am picking this book is because I bought this book over 5 years ago...gosh I can't believe it was that long ago....I bought it second hand.  I have always liked Mary Wickes and enjoyed her in every thing I've seen her in so I wanted to read more about her.

Who is Mary Wickes, you might say?  Well, she really IS the face you've seen before. She never had a leading role but she had hundreds of supporting roles.  Most of the time, she was cast as a house-keeper, a nurse or a nun.

You may know her from the 1950s as the house-keeper/inn-keeper in "White Christmas"

Or perhaps you recognize her from the 1960s as she appeared in various roles over several episodes

My friends from the 1970s will definitely know her from "Sigmund & The Sea Monsters", where she appeared as "Aunt Zelda"

In the 1980s, we all know her as Maggie in the "The Father Dowling Mysteries"

In the 1990s, one of her more recognized roles was in "Sister Act" as Sister Mary Lazarus, the previous choir director.

After reading the book, which was incredibly researched, I found that I liked her even more.  I won't go into her whole life story, but she was a single child raised by conservative, high-moral parents.  She was very close to them.  

Her strong morals followed her throughout her life and I so admired her for this.  Her contracts usually included the right to change the dialogue with words or subject matter she found inappropriate.  Sometimes, she even had a say so over the whole script, not just her role.  

She lived a frugal life.  While she made very good money for her roles, she never took anything for granted.  She lived a modest and frugal life and lived in her apartment (which she purchased when they were converted to condos).  She just didn't see a need to waste money.  

She was EXTREMELY close friends with Lucille Ball...best of friends!  Mary was an only child and Lucy didn't have any biological sisters and it seems these two had a real sisterhood.  They were so close that Lucy Arnez delivered Mary's eulogy when she passed since Mary was just a part of the family.

 Some might have seen Mary as a prude as she grew older but she wasn't.  She was set in her ways, and lived a good, righteous life.  She didn't have a large circle of friends but she was very, very loyal to those the friends she had and maintained long lasting friendships.  

Mary, in my opinion, never really got the full recognition she deserved from Hollywood.  She was often overlooked for awards and such because she didn't have major roles.  Even after she passed, the Academy Awards didn't reference her in their annual memorial segment...I mean, come on!  But...to their credit, Mary was kind of private and only let those close to her know what was going on in her life, so perhaps the Academy didn't even know she had passed.

So...if you are watching an old movie like "The Trouble with Angels" or "Sister Act" or an old TV Show like "Bewitched", "The Beverly Hillbillies" or "The Danny Thomas Show" - you'll be sure to spot Mary - take a minute and thank her for her contribution to entertainment.

Prayer Shawls # 4 & 5

 I am part of a prayer shawl ministry at our church.  I am so happy to be part of this group.  I have been wanting our church to do this for years and we started last year.  I was hoping to make at least 6 last year.  I was able to finish 3.  I'm okay with that - that means 3 people were prayed for by me the entire time I was making it for them and I hope the shawls brought them comfort and peace.  I don't always know who they will go to but I know they will go to someone who needs prayer.

If you want to learn more about a Christian prayer shawl, you can read more on Lion Brand Yarn's website by clicking HERE.

I would like to knit/crochet at least 6 shawls this year.  Really, I would like to make 12 but I am setting a realistic goal for myself.

I've already completed 2 and I am starting on my 3rd one today.

Here are the 2 I completed this month - both crocheted.

This one is called To The Point and is made with Yarn Bee Sugarwheel yarn in the color Saturday Sundae. I wasn't sure about the colors at first but I really ended up liking them. It was yarn I had it my stash for a few years, so I was glad to finally put it to good use.

Honestly, the pattern wasn't written exactly right because it would say "double crochet in the next space"but the next space was a chain space and what they really meant was to double crochet in the double crochet on the row below.  But once I figured out what they meant, the pattern was actually pretty easy to follow and memorize...I am sure I will be making this pattern again.

 

 

The other one I made is what I call the original prayer shawl pattern.  The first time I heard about prayer shawls was when I saw this one in a Lion Brand pattern book and it made me interested in making them.  Someone had donated some Homespun yarn to our church and I decided to take advantage of that.  Homespun yarn is super, super soft...perfect for a prayer shawl.

In addition, I've really been having problems photographing these shawls and seeing what they look like from behind.  I have thought about getting a torso stand just for this purpose and I found one that was super cheap on Amazon, so I decided to go for it.

The last time our prayer shawl group met at church, I discovered we still had some donated Homespun yarn, so I picked up a couple of matching skeins for the next prayer shawl, which I will be knitting.

Welcome to 2023 - Here are some goals!

 I've mentioned before that I don't really make New Year's Resolutions anymore but I do still set goals...they are not all "annual" goals but just goals in general.

So...here are some goals I have currently have 

Bible/Prayer Time

I am currently following THIS READING PLAN if you would like to follow along with me.  I also listen to THIS PODCAST as I read.  While I am not Catholic, Father Mike's explains the passages that we read and it helps give me a bit of clarity and insight to God's word. 

I've really been praying and talking to God a lot so far this year...there is so much to thank Him for and so many people to pray for...honestly, I could pray like 24 hours a day and not cover everyone I want to.  I pray each morning after rising and each evening before going to bed, but more than that...I mean I pray all the time - in the car, at work, there is always time to prayer.  

My friend Amanda used to have a  method of praying and I'm not sure if she still does that.
On Monday, for example, she'd pray for friends, on Tuesday, she'd pray for the world, on Wednesday, she'd have gratitude prayers, something along those lines (I can't remember exactly).  But I'm more of a mish-mash and pray about a whole array of things every day.

I kind of follow the ACTS way

A – Adoration

Begin your prayer in adoration and praise of God. Let yourself be filled with wonder at who God is and how He desires to be with you, always.

C – Contrition

Next, ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you your sinfulness and need for God’s mercy and grace. Name to God particular sins you need forgiveness for at this moment.

T – Thankfulness

Spend some time now thanking God for the gifts in your life. Try to notice the gifts you often take for granted. 

S – Supplication

Lastly, lift up your cares and concerns to God. Pray for the people in your life, for those who are suffering, for the needs of all people throughout the world. Ask God to show you who to pray for today. 

 

Crafty Time

I am incorporating all crafts into this...I would like to make at least 6 prayer shawls this year (one every other month) for our church members who need comforting.

I want to finish up a couple of afghans that I have in progress - one is VERY old and I have a few more in mind that I would like to make.

I haven't been part of the dishcloth swap on Ravelry in a few years but I would like to participate this year.

Cricut time - I finally want to learn how to use HTV and make a t-shirt or two.  I know exactly what I want the first shirt to be...I just need to watch some videos and learn how to do it.  I also want to get together with my friend, Pam and show her how to use her Cricut.  I also would like to make my Christmas cards this year.  The hard part is deciding on a design.

Painting - would love to do some water coloring this year.

Scrapbooking - continue with my daily Project Life photos and perhaps even do a bit of "old fashioned" paper scrap booking

 

Healthy Time

Like most people, I want to have a healthier lifestyle.  I do fairly well, but know I could do better, especially on the exercise front.

 

Project Time 

There are still a few projects at home I want to do - not major but some organization things, going through old family photos and putting them together (photos that were in my late brother's possession and I now have), setting up an office/craft room, working on my family tree and genealogy research.This are not necessarily big projects but they are some that will take a lot of time...since I am planning on retiring this year...hopefully that will give me the time I need to do some of these things.

There are lots of other goals I have but I can't do everything I want to do so I just try to narrow my focus a little. We shall see how it goes...baby steps are the key - just don't bite off more than I can chew and take baby steps - remember...just put one foot in front of the other to get started

2022 Year in Review & December Project Life

Well, 2022 is behind us now and we are in 2023.  That sounds so odd to say to me...I mean, it honestly doesn't seem like 23 years ago when all the hullabaloo about Y2K was going on - that was 23 years ago!! My godson was a new born babe and now he is a grown man, living on his own with his beautiful girlfriend and is a police officer...wow!

So...How did I finish with my 2022 Goals?

1) Daily Bible Reading/Prayer - I was doing great and then the holiday season came upon us and well..I slipped a bit and didn't finish my 2022 reading plan, but I did read the Bible almost every day.

2) Weight Loss/Eat Healthier/Exercise - I didn't meet the weight loss goal I had in mind but I do weigh less at the end of 2022 than I did at the beginning, so that is a plus.

3) Watercolor - a bust.  I didn't do any painting at all in 2022 - how sad...

4) Crochet/Knit - pretty good - I crocheted 20 hats for the homeless and a prayer shawl and started a new afghan.  All were crochet and looking back, I am surprised I didn't knit anything in 2022. 

5)  Personal Journaling - good - I didn't journal every day, but I did journal, which is more than I have done in recent years.

6) House Projects - very pleased!  I got 2 MAJOR projects done, with my friend, Susan's, help.  What a blessing that is to have completed those projects...I feel like a giant weight was lifted.

7) Scrapbooking/Project Life - excellent! I stayed current all year and I am just waiting for a sale in the Project Life app to order my pages and put them in a book.  In addition, I put together a recipe book, something I have been wanting to do for years and now I have one!

8) Genealogy -good.  I wrote out my actual family tree connection to the Mayflower and added several new photos and documents to my family tree.

Overall...with all my goals - I'd give myself a score of 90 out of 100.  

Speaking of Project Life...here are my December pages (click to enlarge)

 

 

 

 

Edited to add:  It is funny how I read and re-read my journaling on my Project Life pages and now that I am reading them again, I find errors.  I'll go back and correct them in the Project Life app before I print the pages, but just wonder how I miss some of these at the time.  But you know what, it is okay...I'm not perfect and if I look back at something years later and see mistakes, well, that is just part of who I am, right?

Bible Verse of the Year - 2023

Instead of choosing "One Little Word" this year.  I decided to choose a Bible Verse to live by.

Around 6 weeks ago, this verse came to me, while I was reading a pew Bible in our church's sanctuary.  It has really stuck with me.   

It will be a real challenge to do EVERYTHING without complaining or grumbling..but I am really going to work at it.