Monday, February 28, 2022

"Does Watching The News Give You Anxiety?"

                                "Does watching the news give you anxiety?"

Recently, Marash Girl noted the above headline on an email advertisement, a headline which reminded her of the fact that years ago, her father used to have trouble getting to sleep at night.

His doctor asked him, "Are you watching the news on television before you go to bed at night?"

Marash Girl's father answered in the positive.

"Well," the doctor replied, "no need for sleeping pills.  Simply stop watching the news before you retire, and you should have no problem sleeping . . . . "

The doctor, as it turned out, was absolutely correct.

Sunday, February 27, 2022

An Icy Greeting On A Sunday Morning!

                                                                                                                                                        Photo by MarashGirl©2022

 We kids used to love to suck on icicles, but Marash Girl doubts we could have handled this one!

Saturday, February 26, 2022

Is The Barometric Pressure Dropping?

Feeling down? Is the barometric pressure dropping? Guess what!  Apparently, when the barometric pressure drops, some women sense that drop in barometric pressure, and feel "down" as the barometric pressure heads downward.   

This fact was brought to light by a neighbor who is a psychiatrist . . .  and a woman!

If you're feeling down, perhaps you should consider repainting your house!  (See tomorrow's blog post!)

Friday, February 25, 2022

Feb. 26-27 Winter Photography Fair Features Photograph of An Armenian Family c. 1880

Join Photography Fair This Weekend - February 26-27
From the comfort of your home - It's virtual . . . 
opens Saturday noon (eastern) through Sunday 8pm
     Below, a photograph of an Armenian family from Akhaltsikhe,Georgia, c.1880 by Dimitri Ermakov  

 

Thursday, February 24, 2022

Celebrating St. Vartan on Vartanantz Day

       Remembering the many celebrations commemorating St. Vartan on St. Vartanantz Day                                         at the  AGBU Armenian Elementary School in Watertown, Massachusetts

                                                  Above image borrowed from the internet. 

This day is all the more significant as Vartan was the root of Marash Girl's mom's family name.

Wednesday, February 23, 2022

What lock never needs a key?

What lock never needs a key?   Have you figured out the answer yet?  Give up?

A lock of hair never needs a key! . . . Only a comb!                                                                                                                                                                                           Riddle by MarashGirl©2022                                                                                                    

                                                                                                               

Tuesday, February 22, 2022

Riddle Again!

 What lock never needs a key?

                                         Photo by MarashGirl©2022     
   
                                                          Check in tomorrow for the answer!

                                                                                                                    Above Photo and Riddle by MarashGirl©2022 

Sunday, February 20, 2022

This Robin Is Looking Forward To Spring!

                                Above photo taken today in Newton Corner by MarashGirl©2022

                               This blog post is meant for tomorrow,  Monday, February 21, 2022!

Tracts For The Neighbors!

When little Marash Girl arrived home from church one Sunday afternoon with a pile of religious tracts clutched in her hand, tracts which she intended to distribute to her neighbors, her father stopped her in her tracts . . . whoops, rather her father stopped her in her tracks!

"Has anyone ever asked you why you're so different?" he asked.

"No," answered little Marash Girl.

"Well, until they do, you don't preach.  The best way to spread the good word is through the way you live.  Live that life, girl!"

 

Saturday, February 19, 2022

When does the sun not shine?

Since tomorrow is Sunday (Sun Day),  Marash Girl asks her readers the following question:    

                                                "When does the sun not shine?"

Give up? 

 When does the sun not shine?  Never!  The sun always shines . . . it's just that we can't always see it!

Friday, February 18, 2022

Newton High School Class of 1958

                         Thanks to Dan Morrison for this photo picturing several members of                      Newton High School  Class of 1958.  
 Please email or comment if you can identify any of the folks pictured above.

Thursday, February 17, 2022

Pennies For The Parking Meters!

Remember when parking meters gave you 15 . . . sometimes 30 minutes for one pennie?  Those were the days, right?  Well, on one of those days,  Ann-Louise and Marash Girl were walking along a well traveled road . . . a road with lots of cars parked at parking meters soon to run out of time  . . . when who should the girls spy approaching the first of the cars parked at one of those parking meters?  Can you guess? 

Time's up!  

The answer? A meter maid with a pad of parking tickets in her left hand and a pen in her right hand. 

Marash Girl and Ann-Louise reached into their purses and grabbed as many pennies as they could find, and in an attempt to outrun the meter maid, popped a couple of pennies into every parking meter that was out of time . . . Their good deed for the day . . . or the week!

N.B. Luckily, the meter maid chose to ignore the girls' act of largesse.  Guess she figured it was less work for her!

Wednesday, February 16, 2022

Before The Snows Arrived . . .

.   Geese gather along the Charles River in Watertown Square the day before the snows arrived!
                                                                                                               Photo by MarashGirl©2022

Tuesday, February 15, 2022

Tree Warming Along The Charles River

Luckily, a kind soul wrapped this tree up in a warm handmade woolen afghan just before the snowfall!
Photo by MarashGirl©2022

Monday, February 14, 2022

Happy Birthday, Anoushig!

Photo byMarashGirl©2022 "Everywhere I look, I see valentines!!!" Happy Birthday to the Anoushigest Valentine of all!

Saturday, February 12, 2022

Patsy and Eddie . . .

Seeing sidewalk art (check out yesterday's blog post) brought Marash Girl back to the days of Claflin (Elementary) School . . . and the two who were sweethearts very early on . . . was it second or third grade? Their classmates used to chant to them: Patsy and Eddie sitting in a tree, K-i-s-s-i-n-g! First comes love, Then comes marriage, Then comes Patsy with a baby carriage!" N.B. Whoops! Forgot to mention that we're celebrating Abraham Lincoln's birthday! Happy Birthday, President Lincoln!

Friday, February 11, 2022

Sidewalk Art . . .

Sidewalk art caught on camera just before the snows arrived!
Photo by MarashGirl©2021

Thursday, February 10, 2022

"Yardsaling" With Archie!

Years ago, Marash Girl had never attended a yard sale. Learning of this, her friend Archie offered to introduce Marash Girl to the world of "yard saling" . . . and what a world that was! Never had Marash Girl seen such treasures -- antique teapots, silverware, hardcover books signed by the author/s, brass candlesticks, pewter candlesticks, brand new candles, costume jewelry, and on and on and on . . . a world of treasures, treasures for a pittance . . . a world of which Marash Girl had been completely unaware. Thank you, Archie, for those fun-filled spring, summer and fall seasons of yardsaling . . . seasons that continue to this day . . . or rather continued until COVID reared its ugly head and stopped the fun of yardsaling . . . But as Grandpa Peter would comment, were he still with us, "COVID, too, shall pass!" Allow Marash Girl to add, "And may it pass soon!"

Wednesday, February 9, 2022

Tuesday, February 8, 2022

RESPECT THOSE ICY SIDEWALKS!!!

This past Saturday evening, Marash Girl witnessed a seasoned delivery man perform a somersault on the dark icy sidewalks outside of her home, the somersault preformed after he had successfully delivered a package to a neighbor's house up the street (up the hill, so, yes, literally, "up the street")! He must have trained as an acrobat in his early life, as he survived the fall with grace...

Monday, February 7, 2022

Remembering Armand Andreassian

Wednesday, May 3, 2017 Concert at the Armenian Cultural Foundation In May of 2017, Marash Girl attended (first row seats!) a concert featuring New England Conservatory students -- Canadian/Armenian Eva Aronian, violinist, and American/French Pierre-Nicolas Colombo, pianist. Hosted by The Andreassian Music Fund and the Canadian Women's Club (Canadian Consulate), the musicians, New England Conservatory students, (Violinist Eva Aronian, Pianist Pierre-Nicolas Colombo) played pieces by Maurice Ravel, Johannes Brahms, Fritz Kreisler to name a few. A cocktail reception preceded the concert which was followed by (the concert, not the cocktails) a social hour that included desserts and coffee. An enjoyable Sunday afternoon! And particularly enjoyable for Marash Girl, as the concert was held at the Armenian Cultural Foundation in Arlington, Mass., a foundation established to preserve the collection of her dear, long ago friend, Vahan Topalian.
Above photo by MarashGirl©2017 Above: Armand Andreassian introduces the event at the Armenian Cultural Center, 2017. May the Lord welcome Armand into the Kingdom of Heaven.

Sunday, February 6, 2022

Cheering Up The Neighborhood

                                                    Photo by MarashGirl©2022
       
The owner of this house decided to use colorful brushstrokes in order to cheer up the neighborhood! 

Singing Hymns In Watertown

Grandma Jennie (while she was still dating Grandpa Peter) and her sister (Marash Girl's Auntie Lydia) were invited to sing a duet on a Sunday morning at the frpmt of the church, the Armenian Bretheren Church of Watertown.(They both had lovely voices!) As they approached the altar, a man from the congregation stood up, unbidden, and loudly insisted that the two ladies "most give their testimonies" before they be allowed to sing a duet for the church congregation. Marash Girl's Great Uncle Vartan, then minister of the church, stood up on the altar, stood up to his full stature (and he was a tall man for an Armenian in those days), pointed at the rude fellow, and intoned in stertorial tones (in English with his Armenian accent), "You sit dowvun!" And that, as they say, was that! The two ladies sang their duet without further interruption.

Saturday, February 5, 2022

Have you ever had a rabbit for breakfast?

                                                                                                                                       Photo by MarashGirl©2022 

  Marash Girl and Marash Boy were surprised when this rabbit showed up for Sunday breakfast!

 

Don't Know Why, But In The Midst of All This Snow, Marash Girl Is Remembering Summer Saturdays In Sturbridge Before The Tornado

Years ago, several years before the 2011 summer tornado hit Massachusetts, Marash Girl and her family would not only summer in the old cabin on top of Wilbraham Mountain, but would often spend time there at the end of a work week, leaving late on a Friday afternoon from the eastern side of the Bay State to arrive in Wilbraham about an hour and a half later, traffic allowing. On such weekends, Marash Girl would often drive on Saturday afternoons down from the top of Wilbraham Mountain, east to Sturbridge, Massachusetts, to join the artists, writers, musicians, and poets of the area, all meeting at a restaurant's coffee shop, if only for a cup of coffee and some words of encouragement. (Marash Girl was honored to be welcomed into the group . . .) But as Marash Girl's father would have said at this juncture, "Those days are gone . . . forever!" N.B. Should any of you reading this blog be one of the artists, writers, musicians, or poets that used to meet in Sturbridge in those days, please comment below! Or email!

Friday, February 4, 2022


NO MAIL?

For the first time in Marash Girl's memory, mail will be delivered only 3 days a week to the residents of her city, a suburb of Boston, according to the local United States Postal Service. This change in the United States mail delivery schedule may cause issues for folks who depend on mail being delivered 6 days a week . . . whether for business or for personal matters. If you live in Newton, Massachusetts, or care about what happens with the United States Postal Service, please call the powers that be at the United States Postal Service, or Mayor Fuller’s office at Newton City hall . . . 617-796-1000 . . . or email the Mayor at rfuller@newtonma.gov to express your concern . . . that is, if you are concerned! And if you have time, perhaps calling the Newtonville Post Office itself at 617-244-2355 will help. These things begin in a small way, but if not "nipped in the bud", as it were, . . . well, you know where this is going! Please forward this notice to others who may be concerned, as well. This is a democracy, and the voice of the people must be heard! Or is Marash Girl becoming too dramatic? She thinks not, as she knows what happened in Marash when the people's voices were not heard!

Thursday, February 3, 2022

GEORGE WESTINGHOUSE: POWERING THE WORLD

The editors of William R. Huber's recently published volume, GEORGE WESTINGHOUSE: POWERING THE WORLD, were in contact with Marash Girl while the publication of this volume  was still in the process of completion.  Why were they in contact with Marash Girl?  Because Marash Girl's father used to sell Westinghouse products at his shop, Newtonville Electrical Co., Inc., in Newtonville, Massachusetts?  No.  Because her father was favored by the Westinghouse Company to repair their products that others found impossible to repair?  All true, but, "No."

The editors of GEORGE WESTINGHOUSE: POWERING THE WORLD were in contact with Marash Girl to ask permission to use her photograph of the plaque commemorating Manhattan's Pearl Street Station, a photograph which appeared in her Marash Girl blog, because, apparently it was the only photograph on the internet of said plaque.  

What was Marash Girl going to say?  "No?"

Nope.  

Marash Girl, of course, was honored to say, "Yes!" And last week, as a thank you for Marash Girl's largesse, the publishers sent Marash Girl a brand new copy of William R. Huber's newly published book, GEORGE WESTINGHOUSE: POWERING THE WORLD.  


 
Should you decide to acquire a copy of the above pictured book, check out the photograph of the plaque commemorating the Pearl Street Station in Manhattan, the photograph published on page 107 of  Huber's GEORGE WESTINGHOUSE: POWERING THE WORLD, the photograph taken one day in Manhattan by Marash Girl!

Siran, Cynthia, or Sylvia?

She was a young Armenian girl growing up in Clinton, Massachusetts. She and her family spoke exclusively Armenian at home. Her name was Siranush...a typical Armenian name. She was called Siran for short. When it came time for Siranush to be enrolled in the first grade, luck would have it that her cousin from Lowell (who was about 15 years old at the time) happened to be visiting. Siran's parents, whose English was not very good, asked Elizabeth to take Siran and register Siran for the first grade. . . which Elizabeth did. While Elizabeth was in line, she thought about her sisters' enrollment in school with Armenian names like Siruhi and Sirvart, and how difficult it had been for her sisters to integrate because of those names. Elizabeth determined that she was not going to have Siran suffer the same fate. So Elizabeth decided that when the time came to register Siran, she was going to do something about it! She thought she would register Siran as Cynthia or Sylvia or something like that! She decided on Sylvia and that name has been Siran's name all these many years! Sylvia's birth certificate still says Siranush. When Siran needs to show that certificate, the town clerk will put in parentheses the following: (also known as Sylvia). The above a true story written by Sylvia (originally known as Siranoush)! N.B. Silvia originates from the Latin word for forest. Siranoush originates from two Armenian words meaning sweet love!

Wednesday, February 2, 2022

Arranging your hair in the morning?

With what comb is it impossible to arrange your hair in the morning?       Give up?

Here's the answer, should you care . . . 

It's impossible to arrange your hair in the morning, at noon, or anytime with . . . . honeycomb!          

Try it!  You won't like it!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Original Riddle by MarashGirl©2022                                                                                                                                          

A Hairy Riddle!

With what comb is it impossible to arrange your hair in the morning?

"Saçu boyanmīsh!"

"Saçu boyanmīsh!" . . . a statement which, to this day, Marash Girl can hear Grandma Yester announcing in those very words, a statement Grandma Yester made whenever she spied a woman in her forties or fifties with shiny brown or shiny black hair. She was so proud of her abilities to detect such fakery. Grandma Yester herself had brown hair with only a few strands of grey until she was well into her 80's. . . as did her daughter, Marash Girl's mummy Jennie! And Marash Girl? Not sayin'!

Tuesday, February 1, 2022

With what comb is it impossible to arrange your hair in the morning?

With what comb is it impossible to arrange your hair in the morning?     Give up?

Want the answer?  Here goes . . .   

It's impossible to arrange your hair in the morning using ... honeycomb!!!!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Original Riddle by MarashGirl©2022

Creating Jewelry From The Jewels Of The Sea

Marash Girl and her cousin Pauline used to delight in creating earrings and brooches in floral patterns made from tiny colored seashells. They would work in the front room on the third floor using Duco Cement to attach the tiny seashells in patterns reminiscent of flowers, glueing these seashell flowers onto circular plastic bases that were then attached to metal bases that had metal screwbacks or metal pins attached to allow the decorative seashell arrangements to be used as earrings, barpins, and brooches. The two cousins would join Uncle Paul (Pauline's dad) as he drove to the Middlesex County Beekeepers Association (not sure if that was its proper title back then) on (and not sure about this) the fourth Saturday afternoon of every month . . . As soon as Uncle Paul had arrived at his destination, as soon as he had parked the car, he opened the trunk to display the girls' seashell jewelry creations, as all of the beekeepers' wives rushed to view the trays of unique seashell earrings and pins that the girls had created. Of course, the women would invariably purchase a favorite pair of seashell earrings and/or a seashell brooch made by the hands of the beekeeper's daughter and niece, as, in those days, very few people were creating earrings from seashells. (Do folks do so today? Do folks even wear screwback earrings or brooches today?) Little did Marash Girl and her cousin or their parents realize that the fumes from the cement could degenerate brain cells . . . no wonder Marash Girl is not as smart as she used to be . . . she's finally learned the reason! Hurray!