 What is the purpose?
It not only designates the numbered year but is the day we say goodbye to the old year and hello to the new. It is a new beginning and a national holiday in the United States. 1904 was the first year this was celebrated in Times Square, New York. In 1907 the first ball was dropped in this location from a flag pole. Our current Times Square ball is a sphere, 12 ft. in diameter, and weighs 11,875 pounds. It is covered in 2688 Waterford Crystal triangles varying in size. It is worth more than One million dollars. It has 672 LED nodules. It begins its descent at 11:59:00 p.m. EST, and lands at midnight to signal the start of the New Year. It is estimated that one million people attend these festivities in New York City. This year will mark the year 2024.
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Did you know that the last time that Christmas and Chanukah landed on the same exact day was in 2005? The next time this happens will be in 2024. The word Chanukah translates to dedication, as it was following a revolt and the rededication of the holy temple in Jerusalem, occurred. When the temple was liberated, they found one bottle of oil which was enough for one day’s burning. Miraculously it lasted for 8 days and is the reason Chanukah is celebrated for 8 days. However, it is a minor holiday in the Jewish religion. Christmas, however, is a major holiday in the Christian religion. There is nothing in the bible that designates the day Jesus was actually born. They estimate his birth was somewhere around 4 BC. Emperor Constantine in Rome began celebrating Christmas on December 25th in 336. It is believed that the selection of December 25th for celebration is because it is exactly nine months after March 25th, the date of his crucifixion. Both holidays for their respective religions denote Celebration, Religion, Family, Lights, Food, and Presents, and in this we are united. Oh yes, both begin with the letters, CH. The New YearWhat is the purpose? It not only designates the numbered year but is the day we say goodbye to the old year and hello to the new. It is a new beginning and a national holiday in the United States. 1904 was the first year this was celebrated in Times Square, New York. In 1907 the first ball was dropped in this location from a flag pole. Our current Times Square ball is a sphere, 12 ft. in diameter, and weighs 11,875 pounds. It is covered in 2688 Waterford Crystal triangles varying in size. It is worth more than One million dollars. It has 672 LED nodules. It begins its descent at 11:59:00 p.m. EST, and lands at midnight to signal the start of the New Year. It is estimated that one million people attend these festivities in New York City. This year will mark the year 2024. HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL MY READERS AND THEIR LOVED ONES!!!!
THE BORSCHT BELT MUSEUM IS OPENING IN ELLENVILLE, NEW YORK ON JULY 29, 2023.   THIS PHENOMENON was also known as: THE COUNTRY THE MOUNTAINS THE CATSKILLS It was a retreat to escape the summer heat for the '40s, '50s, and 60's city dwellers. IT WAS THE BORSCHT BELT... …our oasis for vacation! I remember... ...I couldn't wait to go every summer. We spent one week, 2 weeks, or sometimes a month at our glorious, welcoming hotels. The weekdays were inhabited by the moms and their children. The Dads would come up on weekends after a long week's work. There was Simon Sez, card games, mah jongg, swimming, boating, basketball, softball, and 3 delicious meals a day. My Mom never put me in the children's dining room. She said I would catch their germs (it is the "only child" that gets this luxury) I was special in the grown-up dining room. At night we went to the "Casino." It wasn't for gambling as that is what the theater was called then. We sat on folding chairs set up in rows and would go early for the best seats. We saw up-and-coming comedians like Henny Youngman and Rodney Dangerfield. We saw singers who were just starting out like Eddie Fisher and Mel Torme, and beautiful dancers. All would go on to make a name for themselves. We were their first audience in the magical Borscht Belt. We were hungry for entertainment and gave them gold stars.  The young ladies of the family had opportunities to date the waiters and other staff members. They were all young men who were making money for the summer and going to college. The lifeguards were prime. So many engagements and weddings were formed here for new family life to begin. It was the stuff the movie "Dirty Dancing" was made of.
Fabulous hotels were waiting, Grossingers, The Concord, The Nevele, Kutchers, and a host of bungalow colonies if you wanted to cook yourself, called "kochelein". SO COME ONE, COME ALL.. ...VISIT THE BORSCHT BELT MUSEUM ON JULY 29, 2023. Partake in all the delicious memories with live music, comedy, and of course, some delicious borscht, knishes, and pastrami. Get a peek at how it was and explore the past of the New York Borscht Belt. See you there. Carol-Rose Author, Blogger, and Official Alumnae of The Borscht Belt HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AMERICA! July 4th, 1776, The colonies' separation from Great Britain is unanimously adopted by Congress, with the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. Three of our Founding Fathers and Presidents died on July 4th. They were John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and James Monroe. They made their last statement! A day for us to get that grill going, buy your hot dogs and burgers, watch our fireworks and parades, have a fun Holiday, and celebrate,  The city boasting the best and largest fireworks display is New York City. Thank you to Macy's for this spectacular array and for lighting up the sky over the East River in a 2-hour spectacular. You can catch this on television.  We thank you for our freedom and the great country we live in. There is no other nation in the world like THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!
The older you get, the more you travel, the more you see of happenings near and far, we are grateful and appreciate: "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness." Honor your Country! GOD BLESS AMERICA!  It was the greatest, most spectacular, most melodic.....It was, THE SHOW TO END ALL SHOWS!!!!! PHANTOM OF THE OPERA CLOSES ON BROADWAY AFTER 35 YEARS !!!!  A magical show from London opened on Broadway in New York City on January 9, 1988. It would become the most successful of our time. The music was composed by an English Impresario and composer of musical theater, namely, ANDREW LLOYD WEBER, born in London, England in 1948. He became one of the most coveted and successful theater composers of our time. Some of his works included, Joseph and the Technicolor Dream Coat, Cinderella, Jesus Christ Superstar, Evita, Cats, and countless others. The fabulous English Soprano, Sarah Brightman would star as "Christine" in the original cast. She had an impressive range of 4 Octaves. Specifically, her solo "All I Ask of You," would have 3 million plays on Apple Music. Ms. Brightman was married to Andrew Lloyd Weber from 1984 -1990. The original Phantom was Michael Crawford, a tenor with a voice "to die for." The title song, "The Phantom of the Opera" was performed as a duet between Ms. Brightman and Mr. Crawford to never-ending applause. His rendition of "Music of the Night" won a standing ovation from the theatergoers at every performance.  Combined with the talent of Andrew Lloyd Weber, they were a trio of extraordinary talent in an extraordinary theater show, and probably never duplicated. They were part of a fantastic cast, including Steve Barton who played Raoul. Over the years, so many fabulous talents continued to play these roles, to audiences all over the world. Here are some interesting facts about the show...
Carol-Rose Editorial: The Chandelier fell for the last time at The Majestic Theater on April 16, 2023, to a glittering array of an, "Invite Only" audience. The Monkey Box played for the last time, as well. It has been 35 years of beautiful, extraordinary magic, and will be hard to top. I offer a heartfelt thank you for all the fantasy and melodic genius that I was allowed to experience (I hope my readers had the opportunity too). My sincere hope is: We will be graced in the future with a revival so that future generations may enjoy this wonder of our times. "PHANTOM, PLEASE KNOW THAT I LOVE YOU! I will think of you only...... YOU WERE INORDINATELY SEXY!"  Carol-Rose Marshall, Author The U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps., and U.S. Coast Guard have a tradition where active military ships recently deployed in overseas operations dock in a variety of major cities for one week. The crews enter the city and visit tourist attractions.  It's the 1950's and we were World War II babies, now 17-18 years old. It was a different time and we were not worried about going into New York City, traveling on the subway, or unusual safety issues. My girlfriend, Marilyn K-P, and I were excited to go to Times Square during Fleet Week. We dressed up. Always skirts or dresses, college-size heels, lipstick, and powder, and were ready to go!  The fleet was in, and there were hoards of sailors all over New York City. The first stop is Times Square. We laughed, we spoke to them, we joined them in a drink (a drink at that time was a Coca-Cola or a milkshake). We showed them the Empire State Building. We did not have cell phones and were unreachable to our parents. But no one worried as we were safe and happy. We met our friends and traded stories with sailors who lived all over the United States and the world. Everyone was respectful. It was about honoring our Fleets, welcoming them, and meeting the “all-American girls” of New York. We explained our education, our life, etc., and listened to young men, off to who-knows-where. They were appreciative and it was all about having a good day. It was fun, and informative and opened up horizons in a good clean day’s events for all of us. We moved on and although approached to write to them, we declined. It was not realistic and we were just a welcoming committee to be stored as memories. Here I am in 2023 remembering. No, I would not allow my daughter or grandchildren to do this now. It is a different world (so sad) and there are many cries of danger, not with the fleet, but in New York City. How I wish they all had known that freedom, but the city has changed.  I love our American values. Please don't change them. My beloved grandson is graduating from Annapolis this weekend. We congratulate him and his beautiful young companions at Annapolis. The famed Blue Angels will fly over the Annapolis Graduation services. So exciting and spectacular! We are so proud of you all!  It's graduation time, not only at Annapolis but all across the land. Congratulations to my other grandchildren who are graduating, and those who are already fulfilling a work career.
We respect our constitution, our American Flag, and the young men and women who will be instrumental in developing a better world. And again, IT'S FLEET WEEK.............WELCOME !!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY !!!! Be assured, I truly believed this was just a luncheon with my children. It had been a long time since we were all together in one room. When my son and daughter-in-law, who reside in Florida, offered to host it at their country club, I was happy to come as a guest. My husband and I arrived at the Country Club, along with my youngest daughter from New York and her fiancé. My son was guiding us through the dining room. My first FEELING was one of annoyance that we had to walk so far into the dining room. (Oh well, no-one ever listens to me) There were curtains ahead of us sectioning off a room of the club, and my son kept saying that he wanted us to see the new renovations the club had made. (Oh, can’t walk so far, why do I care?)  He parted the curtains and I saw a blur of people at tables in front of me. I turned to him and said, “This is a private party, let’s go.” Then I heard an exuberant crowd yelling, “SURPRISE”……HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!” I thought, “OMG, THIS IS FOR ME!! OMG, I SHOULD HAVE HAD MY HAIR DONE! OMG, I would have worn something else…. And then, OMG I never had a surprise party before……. MY HEART STARTED PUMPING HARD! I am so EXCITED!!” My daughter, who resides in Florida, came rushing towards me, hugging and yelling “surprise.” My son from New York came over and exuberantly kissed me. My grandchildren flooded towards me...…. (I can’t believe it. This is thrilling…….) Then I turned to the table to my right and was totally taken aback that my childhood friends were sitting there….I hugged them and started to cry. (How did they get here?) My husband sent an uber for them. Then it hit me, my husband and I are together 24/7. How did he do this without my knowing? And my Florida son and daughter-in-law were his accomplices.” (Never thought anything would get by me, but….IT DID!) Then I turned and saw all my beautiful family and friends that filled the room. It looked like more than 40 people. STILL AMAZED, I THOUGHT, This is for me…..I can’t believe it. I am so thrilled and so grateful for all of you in my life. I GREETED EVERYONE….There was FABULOUS FUN, FABULOUS FOOD, FABULOUS PICTURES, FABULOUS CAKE, AND TABLE WTH A LARGE POSTER OF MY FIRST BOOK. WOW! EVERYONE SIGNED IT…..AND…..BEAUTIFUL GIFTS, WITH THE MOST FABULOUS HUSBAND, CHILDREN, FAMILY, AND FRIENDS ANYONE IN THIS WORLD COULD WANT.”    And…..they were not through yet…..after a glorious party, an after party with barbecue for all who could attend, at my son’s home…...This marvelous day will never end in my heart. Dear Everyone: Thank you so much….a special day, and feeling in my heart and soul. It was a remembrance that I will never forget. May you have all the love your heart can hold…. All the happiness a day can bring…. All the blessings a life can unfold. Thanks, kisses, hugs, appreciation, and joy for a Once in a Lifetime Surprise! (I have to write about this on my blog.) Carol-Rose Marshall Wife, Mother, Grandmother, Friend, Relative & Confidant Author and Blogger  |
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