Have You Ever Prepared Egg Salad With Parsley?

You read that right. Have you ever prepared egg salad with parsley rather than celery? Well, yesterday was a first for Marash Girl. Plenty of eggs in the refrigerator, plenty of parsley in the vegetable drawer, but no celery. . . Vaht to do? Egg salad with chopped parsley was the answer . . . a first for Marash Girl . . . and Marash Boy loved it! In fact, he told Marash Girl that his mother (Azniv, a survivor of the Armenian Genocide) often made hard boiled egg salad this way . . . and it took Marash Girl all these years to learn that fact . . . and to prepare egg salad with parsley rather than celery!!!! Try it, you'll like it! And so will all the old folks who can't chew celery!

"Oh, Come To The Church In The Wildwood . . ."

Remembering the little white church on Plum Island (see blogpost for Sunday, 1/23) brought the following song to mind, a song that was a favorite of Marash Girl's father, one he would often sing, sing, sing, sing! The Church in the Wildwood by Dr. William S. Pitts There's a church in the vale by the wildwood, No lovelier spot in the dale; No place is so dear to my childhood As the little brown church in the vale. Chorus Oh, come, come, come, come, Come to the church in the wildwood, Oh, come to the church in the vale; No spot is so dear to my childhood As the little brown church in the vale.

Didn't believe Marash Girl?

The photos below were taken by Marash Girl this morning, taken from the vantage point of her front porch . . . she couldn't risk getting her camera covered with those deceptively beautiful white snowflakes!

Above photos by MarashGirl©2022

18 Inches of Snow Predicted For This Weekend!

Eighteen inches of snow predicted for this weekend? How do you like them apples? (to use an old expression. . . ) Or should Marash Girl say, "How do you like them snowflakes?"

"One For Me And One For You!"

A widow and a widower met, fell in love, got married, but couldn’t agree on which of their homes should become their permanent abode. So they decided to keep both houses, live one week in one, and the next week in the other, the following week in one, and the . . . . Well, you get the picture. And that kept life fresh and exciting for them . . . The above is a true story related many years ago to Marash Girl by her father, Bedros!

Yegoor, Bahchig Daahm!

Marash Girl forwarded the following illustration to an Armenian friend who resides in the Middle East (parenthetically, a friend she has never met . . . or kissed!): "Yegoor, yelag daahm!"(which translates from the Armenian into English, "Come, I'll give you a strawberry . . .")

Illustration taken from the internet. Her friend's response? "Yegoor, bahchig daahm!" (...which roughly translates, "Come, I'll give you a kiss!") . . . a phrase typically used when an adult is speaking to a young child in response to the child's offering something . . . But, hey! Marash Girl will take it!!! Note: The "a" sound in Armenian rhymes with the "u" in the English word "drum".

Starbucks Drops Vaccine Mandate For Starbucks' Massachusetts Workers!

Marash Girl recently learned through reading an article in the Newton TAB that Starbucks has suspended its vaccination mandate policy for its workers, including its workers in stores in Massachusetts, thereby reflecting a Supreme Court ruling blocking a federal mandate. Because of this action on the part of Starbucks, Marash Girl and Marash Boy, (who typically purchase coffee and treats on a weekly basis from their local Starbucks) will suspend their visits to Starbucks.

Risking Her Life Selling Books In Kabul!

Who knew that selling books could be so risky? And writing those books? Perhaps even riskier! https://www.facebook.com/nd/?dw.stories%2Fposts%2F4649199755191726&work_newsfeed_token=S%3A_I183239561787790%3A4649199755191726&aref=1642930716914940&medium=email&mid=5d63c542fb22aG451937b8G5d63c9dc5b4fcG96&bcode=2.1642959519.AbxNMVJ0PoVRq9kiGZg&n_m=bethelcharkoudian%40gmail.com&lloc=media_attachement&rms=v2 With thanks to Garo Derounian for the heads up!

The Little White Church On Plum Island

Marash Girl woke up today remembering . . . no, not the Little Brown Church In The Vale, but the little white church on the island . . . Plum Island! Is this the church she remembered?

Or was it this one?

Marash Girl must have been 7 or 8 years old -- or younger -- when the family was visiting Plum Island for a week and she first saw the little white church. She remembers asking her father why they weren't going to church there . . . it was Sunday, after all. She doesn't remember his answer . . . all she knows is that because it was not THEIR church, she couldn't attend!!! She was so disappointed. Marash Girl thinks that that was probably one of the only Sundays in her childhood that she had not attended church, or at least, one of the only days in her childhood she had not attended Sunday School! N.B. Images taken from the internet.

The Story Behind The Handmade Quilt Marash Girl Found At A Yard Sale

Yesterday evening, as Marash Girl was adjusting the quilt on her bed in preparation for retiring, she remembered the day she had purchased the yorgan. Marash Girl At Yardsale: "But why are you selling this brand new, beautifully handmade quilt . . . And why is it so inexpensive?" Yard Saleswoman: "Well . . . I just want to get rid of it . . . After all, would you want to sleep with your husband under a quilt that another woman has made for him?" (Photo of quilt removed to protect the innocent . . . or not so innocent!)

Oxalis Regnellii (Lucky Shamrock)

Searching the internet for the identification of this flowering plant, a plant that has been in the east window in Karoun's room for years, Marash Girl found that the greenery pictured below is named Oxalis Regnellii (Lucky Shamrock), a plant that bravely flowers literally in the face of the winter snows.

Photo by MarashGirl©2022

Will The Traffic Stop For The Geese?

Will the traffic stop for the geese crossing the street heading towards the Charles River . . . or for Marash Girl photographing the geese crossing the street heading towards the Charles River?

Photo by MarashGirl©2022

Marash Girl's Old Friend, Architect Rostom Voskanian, Gains Fame On The Avenue!

A street in Tehran has been named after well-known Iranian-Armenian architect (and Marash Girl's long ago friend), rahmetli olsun Rostom Voskanian. The avenue adjacent to the H.M. ‘Ararat’ organization in Tehran, formerly Aftab, was renamed in honor of architect, sculptor, painter Rostom Voskanian, ParsToday reports.

According to the website, the authorities of the capital city and the representatives of the political council, made the decision on the renaming, when last year they visited ‘Ararat’ sports ground and got acquainted with the historical building of the chapel Holy Cross, the architect for which was Voskanian. Rostom Voskanian was born in 1932 in Iran and passed away in 2013 in the United States of America. He received his degree from the Department of Architecture of the Faculty of Fine Arts of Tehran University in Iran. He is an honorary doctor of Yerevan State University of Engineering and Construction. There are many buildings in Iran designed by Rostom Voskanian -- public buildings and apartment buildings, including the Ararat Sports Complex, the Armenian Club, the Armenian Kindergarten in Tabriz, the construction of the Central Park of the Tabriz Prelacy, and other structures. NOTE: Marash Girl thanks author Davit Muradyan for the above photo and article. . . And I'm sure rahmetli olsun Rostom Voskanian is thanking Davit, as well!

"Back off!"

Photo by MarashGirl©2022

On Martin Luther King Day, Marash Girl Remembers Marching With Rev.Martin Luther King To The Boston Common In 1965

Boston Common, April 22,1965. Photographer Unknown. On the day of the march, April 22, 1965, an unknown woman (on left in photo above) approached Marash Girl (on right): "I'm half Armenian," she said. "May I march with you?" Together the two women carried the sign pictured here, marching from Cambridge to the Boston Common. The sign announced, "Armenians for Freedom for All!" N.B. Should anyone know the identity of the woman pictured on the left, or the name of the photographer, please notify Marash Girl or the Armenian Library and Museum of America in Watertown, Massachusetts.

Dracaena fragrans (L.) Ker Gawl. LC Asparagaceae Corn Plant

This Corn Plant grows happily all year round, seated on a plant stand at the eastern most window on the second floor of an old Victorian house in the Boston suburbs...but no sign of corn ever!

Photo by MarashGirl©2022

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, MOMMY AND DADDY!!!!

Marash Girl loves her mommy and daddy so much, but they are no longer with her . . . as both her mommy and daddy were angelic, each in his or her own special way, they have joined the angels in heaven. Marash Girl remembers her dad laughing as he told her the following tale. Peter's Marashtsi Friend: So, Peter, I hear you are getting married. Are you marrying a Marashtsi or an odar? Peter: I'm marrying an odar! Marashtsi Friend: Is she Italiatsi?(Italian?) Peter: Nope! Peter's Marashtsi Friend: Irrish? (spoken with a heavily rolled r) Peter: Nope! Peter's Marashtsi Friend: Eengleesh? (spoken with heavy Armenian accent) Peter's Marashtsi Friend: Vell, who you marrying? Peter: Ainteptsi! At which point Peter's Marashtsi friend started laughing and pushing Peter, recognizing that Peter had been teasing all along. Of course, Peter was marrying Jennie (Lucille Mae), the love of his life who was born and brought up in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the beautiful younger daughter of Antepsi Armenian parents, Yester Bosnian and Garabed Vartanian of Aintab or Antep (the city known today as Gaziantep), both of Jennie's Antepsi Armenian parents having escaped the Armenian Genocide by fleeing Turkey and arriving safely in the United States of America early in the 20th Century. (More on Peter's parents escape of the genocide of the Armenian people in future blogs. Stay tuned!) And although very few folks had been invited to the wedding, as there was very little para in those days for a young couple to feed a large gathering, so many folks arrived at the Armenian Brethren Church in Watertown, Massachusetts, to witness Peter and Jennie's wedding, that the couple had to change the venue of the wedding service at the last moment, moving the minister, themselves, and all in attendance from the Armenian Brethren Church in Watertown, Massachusetts, to the Western Avenue Baptist Church in Cambridge, Massachusetts, a church large enough to accommodate the crowds that had gathered to witness the marriage of the young couple that was so adored by all! Note 1: odar (pronounced with a heavily rolled r) is the Armenian word for foreigner. Note 2: In the old days, and even today (as evidenced by the title of this blog), folks of Armenian origin self identified by the name of the city from which they hailed in the old country! For example, if they came from Aintep, they were known as Ainteptsis; if they came from Marash, they were known as Marashtsis! Get it?

Miss Peoples and the 12 Inch Ruler

Driving by the "play area" bordering the back door of Frank Ashley Day Junior High School last week, (the door through which students attending Day Junior High School entered when the school sponsored dances for the students) reminded Marash Girl of the then assistant principal, Miss Peoples (Marash Girl can't believe that she still remembers that name) and the 12" rule! Day Junior High would sponsor monthly or bimonthly "record hops" (dances where the music was not live but rather provided by a would be "disc jockey" (probably one of the teachers) playing popular music from his record collection over the PA, i.e.,public address system. The music was often romantic, slow and sensuous, an encouragement for students to dance slowly and very close to one another, much to Miss People's dismay. As it happened, Miss Peoples kept a 12 inch wooden ruler by her side -- probably left from her days of teaching mathematics to 7th graders. Miss Peoples (and this is the truth, so help me . . .) would approach every dancing couple, and, using her 12 inch ruler, measure to make sure that the students were distanced sufficiently to fit the 12 inch ruler between what she deemed to be the two young (potential) lovers! Marash Girl wonders if any of the Frank Ashley Day Junior High School graduates of that day remember those dances in the gym and the indignity of being found remiss by Miss People's 12 inch ruler....

"GROWING PAINS!"

When Marash Girl was a little girl, (or better put, when Marash Girl was "growing up") and she complained that something hurt . . . her ankle, her knee, her elbow, her thumb . . . , her father would reply, "Don't worry. Ignore it. It's just growing pains!" These days, if something hurts, Marash Girl remembers her father's words, laughs and responds, if only to herself and those of you who read this blog, "Yep! Ignore it. It's just growing old pains!"

"TRASH . . . PLEASE TAKE!"

Recycling without creating a wasteland . . . !

Photo by MarashGirl©2022

Nips In The City Of Newton?

Newton Licensing Commission has passed a ban on nips. The ban will go into effect on June 30, 2022. Don't know what a nip is? Just look in the gutter near the bus stops on Centre Street in Newton Corner! You can figure it out, surely.

Photo by MarashGirl©2022 In the meantime, enjoy those nips while you can, or should Marash Girl say, while they are still legal!

A Man's A Man For A' That!

When Marash Girl was attending Third Grade at Claflin School in Newtonville, Miss Griffin (Marash Girl's third greade teacher) required each student to memorize and recite a poem in front the class weekly. One of the poems that Marash Girl's dad insisted she memorize for the class, a poem that has influenced her approach to life to this day, is the the poem printed below. Although Marash Girl can no longer recite the poem, she was readily able to find it on the internet. Hope it's not too heavy for the season! Here goes . .. A Man’s a Man for a’ That by Robert Burns Is there for honest poverty That hings his head, an’ a’ that; The coward-slave, we pass him by, We dare be poor for a’ that! For a’ that, an’ a’ that. Our toils obscure an’ a’ that, The rank is but the guinea’s stamp, The Man’s the gowd for a’ that. What though on hamely fare we dine, Wear hoddin grey, an’ a that; Gie fools their silks, and knaves their wine; A Man’s a Man for a’ that: For a’ that, and a’ that, Their tinsel show, an’ a’ that; The honest man, tho’ e’er sae poor, Is king o’ men for a’ that. Ye see yon birkie ca’d a lord, Wha struts, an’ stares, an’ a’ that, Tho’ hundreds worship at his word, He’s but a coof for a’ that. For a’ that, an’ a’ that, His ribband, star, an’ a’ that, The man o’ independent mind, He looks an’ laughs at a’ that. A Prince can mak a belted knight, A marquis, duke, an’ a’ that! But an honest man’s aboon his might – Guid faith, he mauna fa’ that! For a’ that, an’ a’ that, Their dignities, an’ a’ that, The pith o’ Sense an’ pride o’ Worth Are higher rank than a’ that. Then let us pray that come it may, As come it will for a’ that, That Sense and Worth, o’er a’ the earth Shall bear the gree an’ a’ that. For a’ that, an’ a’ that, It’s comin yet for a’ that, That Man to Man the warld o’er Shall brithers be for a’ that. N.B. It is interesting to note that Marash Girl's dad's best friend, Rev. Ian MacDonald, was born in Scotland.

THIS SPIDER PLANT GIVES THANKS

While sitting in a warm cozy corner of Deron's room, this spider plant gives thanks that it was enjoying Friday's snowstorm through a window!

Photo by MarashGirl©2022

Funny. . . You don't look Armenian!

When Marash Girl was growing up, and found herself in a group where she felt the need to identify her ethnicity, she would proudly announce, "I'm Armenian!" . . . meaning, of course, that she was of Armenian heritage, born here in the good old U.S.A.
Often, however, the response she received to her annoucement was the following: "Funny, you don't look Armenian!" And why did neither she nor her brother nor her sister (nor her father) (all of whom were blonde and blue-eyed, except for Marash Girl) . . . why did they not look Armenian? According to Marash Girl's father, it was because of the Crusaders who may have only passed through Marash all those many years ago, but, as her father would put it, ". . . they stayed long enough to leave their seed!"

"Prosecute Now!"

Photo by MarashGirl©2022

Photo by MarashGirl©2022 Photographed above are parishioners and friends of the Eliot Church of Newton, Massachusetts, yesterday, January 6, demonstrating during the evening rush hour in front of Eliot Church on Centre Street in Newton Corner on the anniversary of the January 6th attack on the White House. The demonstration occurred following the church service, parishioners and neighbors holding placards and signs calling for the government to "Prosecute T... Now For Sedition!"

Blessed Armenian Christmas To All!

Above, the illumination of the Liturgy of the Eucharist, hand-copied in AD 1711 by Yeghia Marsvantsi Elijah of Marsvan, donated to the Armenian Museum Of America by Adele and Haig Der Manuelian.

A Winter Sunset In Newton Corner . . .

When it's getting dark, remember to look up!

Photo by MarashGirl©2022

COMMON SNAPPING TURTLE - Chelydra Serpentina - CELEBRATES ALONG THE SHORES OF THE CHARLES RIVER!

The Common Snapping Turtle, not so "common" along the shores of the Charles River in Watertown, celebrated the New Year as well!!!!

Photo by MarashGirl©2022

You Don't Want To Lose A Glove During A New England Winter!!

Photo by MarashGirl©2021 This glove awaits its partner on a bench in the park along Greenough Boulevard in Watertown, Massachusetts.

This Snowman Awaits The Arrival Of Snow As He Joins Marash Girl In Wishing All A Happy New Year!

Photo by MarashGirl©2022

Շնորհավոր Նոր Տարի!

Wishing Marash Girl's friends and readers, both known and unknown to her, the happiest of New Years. As they say in Armenian, Շնորհավոր Նոր Տարի!

[With thanks to the kind soul who posted this image on the internet!!!]