My friend Janet must have sent me sinus vibes from across the pond. I checked in with Dr. Mahmud yesterday and discovered that I, too, have a sinus infection. Now Joey and I are on the same kind of medication ~ Amoxicillin ~ though mine are big horse pills while his is a pretty pink liquid. :) Even with the sinus infection, last night I achieved perfect contentment: rocking Joey as he slept with his sisters close by as we watched the Cardinals come from behind to win a game against the Marlins. Can it get any better than that? :)

An update for Janet:

Singer Barry Manilow wanted more than a good doctor in the operating room where he had hip surgery Monday — he wanted his hard-earned Emmy Award in there too.

Hours after Manilow won the Emmy for outstanding individual performance in a variety or music program, he underwent hip surgery at an undisclosed Southern California hospital. He said he figured the Emmy would be a good luck charm.

Manilow came through the operation "swimmingly," then headed back to his Palm Springs home, publicist Carol Marshall said.

The entertainer won't be resting long, she said. His recovery and rehabilitation was expected to last six to eight weeks. Then the celebrated showman will travel to Atlantic City for an Oct. 14 performance.

On Oct. 21, he is scheduled to appear in Chicago, then it's back to his show at the Las Vegas Hilton on Nov. 8. He is in the middle of a four-year contract with the hotel.

In early November, his new album, "The Greatest Songs of the Sixties," is due out.

Manilow postponed arthroscopic surgery on both hips so he could attend the Emmys on Sunday. He performed "Bandstand Boogie," the theme from Dick Clark's "American Bandstand," as part of a tribute to Clark during the show.

"He was excited. He didn't think he'd win," Marshall said Monday. "It was a nice surprise."

The 60-year-old singer was in pain during the show, but adrenaline kicked in, she said, and when his name was called a few minutes later, he didn't even hear it.

URL: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/n/a/2006/08/28/entertainment/e143730D51.DTL

©2006 Associated Press

I am not a parent, and at this phase of my life, I can safely say that I will never be one. Nonetheless, being a mommy to furry loved ones does give me a taste of the joys and worries of parenting.

Last year about this time, I brought in an adult stray, Biscotti, whom someone had dumped though Biscotti had been neutered and declawed. He was a sweetie-pie and seemed to like being inside again ~ though periodically he would look at the door, then at me and meow. I told him he was an inside kitty now ~ no going back outside. Still, though I knew that he was safer inside, a part of me wondered whether I was being a good mommy by keeping him from any visits back into the world he had recently known.

Sadly, that world led to his death two weeks after I had brought him in. From the beginning, his breathing didn't seem right to me, but when I expressed my concerns to the vet, she told me to wait until time for his boosters to investigate further because the stress of a change in lifestyle and a trip to a vet for shots and an initial check-up could have been creating the breathing problems.

Three days later, Biscotti passed away. He was close to me on my desk, one of his favorite places to be. Then one moment he was licking and nuzzling my face, and the next he fell dead to the floor. Dr. Deb said he had probably contracted heartworms from a mosquito bite when he was outside and had a heart attack as a result. We both felt terrible that we hadn't investigated the breathing problem right away. I should have insisted, and she shouldn't have suggested that we wait.

Friends comforted me by telling me that I gave Biscotti two weeks of love and pampering that he would not have had if I hadn't brought him inside ~ and his final kisses to me seemed to be a thank-you as well as a loving good-bye.

Now I have another little stray making his home with us, and as soon as I heard him cough, he was on his way to the vet. Joey is much better now, but today, as he was looking out the window, I asked him, *Are you glad I brought you inside, little guy? Are you happy here?* He turned around almost immediately and licked and nuzzled my face ~ but this moment of affection was followed only by more nuzzling and purring, not by the heartbreak of losing him as I had Biscotti.

Maybe I finally got it right. :)

You're probably not too surprised that my blogging time has decreased considerably since school started. This first week seems especially tiring for some reason, and now my baby has a respiratory infection, too. I have to give him Amoxicillin twice a day ~ in liquid form ~ but I thought I would share the following instructions for giving a pill to a kitty. Personally, I much prefer giving liquids meds to a kitty though some Velveeta molded around a pill can do wonders. :) Anyway ~ the following instructions have been around the cyber world for a while, but they still make me laugh! :) By the way, in less than a week, my baby boy has gained .65 pound. Dr. Britt seems to think I spoil my furry loved ones?????

Instructions for Giving Your Cat a Pill

1. Pick cat up and cradle it in the crook of your left arm as if holding a baby.

2. Position right forefinger and thumb on either side of cat's mouth and gently apply pressure to cheeks while holding pill in right hand. As cat opens mouth, pop pill into mouth. Allow cat to close mouth and swallow.
3. Retrieve pill from floor and cat from behind sofa. Cradle cat in left arm and repeat process.

4. Retrieve cat from bedroom, and throw soggy pill away.

5. Take new pill from foil wrap, cradle cat in left arm holding rear paws tightly with left hand. Force jaws open and push pill to back of mouth with right forefinger. Hold mouth shut for a count of 10.

6. Retrieve pill from goldfish bowl and cat from top of wardrobe. Call spouse from garden.

7. Kneel on floor with cat wedged firmly between knees, holding front and rear paws. Ignore low growls emitted by cat. Get spouse to hold cat's head firmly with one hand while forcing wooden ruler into mouth. Drop pill down ruler and rub cat's throat vigorously.

8. Retrieve cat from curtain rail, get another pill from foil wrap. Make note to buy new ruler and repair curtains.

9. Wrap cat in large towel and get spouse to lie on cat with its head just visible from below spouse's armpit. Put pill in end of drinking straw, force cat's mouth open with pencil and blow down drinking straw.

10. Check label to make sure pill not harmful to humans, drink glass of water to take taste away. Apply Band-Aid to spouse's forearm and remove blood from carpet with cold water and soap.

11. Retrieve cat from neighbor's shed. Get another pill. Place cat in cupboard and close door onto neck to leave head showing. Force mouth open with dessert spoon. Flick pill down throat with elastic band.

12. Fetch screwdriver from garage and put door back on hinges. Apply cold compress to cheek and check records for date of last tetanus shot.

13. Throw T-shirt away and fetch new one from bedroom.

14. Ring fire brigade to retrieve cat from tree across the road. Apologize to neighbor who crashed into fence while swerving to avoid cat. Take last pill from foil wrap.

15. Tie cat's front paws to rear paws with garden twine and bind tightly to leg of dining table. Find heavy duty pruning gloves from shed. Force cat's mouth open with small spanner. Push pill into mouth followed by large piece of fillet steak. Hold head vertically and pour pint of water down throat to wash pill down.

16. Get spouse to drive you to emergency room; sit quietly while doctor stitches fingers and forearm and removes pill remnants from right eye.

17. Stop by furniture shop on way home to order new table.

18. Arrange for vet to make a house call.

Today is the 13th anniversary of the passing of my beloved mother. Not a day goes by that I don't think about her and miss her so very much. Besides being the best mother in the world, she was my best friend and role model. At my Cleveland Family Chronicles Web site, I have a tribute page for her if you want to check in there for more information about this wonderful lady: http://www.angelfire.com/il/ClevelandFamilyChron/index4.html.

Yippee! Not only do the Cardinals finally win one in Chicago, they also signed the player I was hoping they would get back before the July 31 deadline: Preston Wilson. But things worked out better this way ~ they didn't have to give up anything to get him. :)

Stop reading here if you are sick of hearing about the new novel: Although I am still waiting for the graphics guy to add the cover photo in these places, The Wading Place is now up and running in the booksellers' circuit ~ places like Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble online. However, you can still get a discounted book at www.lulu.com/vikkijeanne.

Some people jog ~ I blog. :)

A wonderful vet, Dr. Deb, once told me, *You don't find them ~ they find you.* Well, another stray has found me ~ much to his sisters' intense dismay. Please keep my little family in your good thoughts as we all adjust to each other?

Our new addition is Josephus *Joey* Wadelomo Cleveland, born about February 2006 ~ weighing in now at 4 pounds. His name is from one of the characters in my most recent novel. :) He is a precious, loving little guy to his mommy ~ not so much to his sisters, but I am praying for the best and petititioning the patron saint of pets for his assistance. Are you listening, St. Francis??? :)

For Janet's luggage ~ wherever it may be! :)

There's hope for us! :)

I would like to introduce *Gracie,* the latest addition to my family: a 2006 Toyota Corolla. Actually, this isn't *really* Gracie, but the photo is a very good facsimile thereof although Gracie is a deeper gray ~ *pearl gray.* :) Gracie is beautiful car, but her best quality is that she gets 35 miles per gallon! :)

Since today is the Sabbath...

Son Shine

[c2000, 2006 Vikki L. Jeanne Cleveland]

I want to shout loud about it,

For the Son shines every day.

There can be no doubt about it ~

I have the Lord to light my way.

I shall sing in exultation

And close my eyes in silent praise

Of the Lord, my soul's salvation.

It is His love that lights my way.

I can feel His joy within me,

For to my blinded soul He gave

The sight to see eternity.

It is His love that lights my way.

I want to shout loud about it,

For the Son shines every day.

There can be no doubt about it ~

I have the Lord to light my way.

I am bursting with the Lord's word.

I want to share it every day

With those lost souls who have not heard:

It is His love that lights my way.

I want to shout loud about it,

For the Son shines every day.

There can be no doubt about it ~

I have the Lord to light my way.

One of my favorite current baseball players, Mike Piazza, has been in the news a lot lately because of the warm welcome he received from the NY fans when the Padres played at Shea. In the course of reading about Mike, I also saw many mentions of Paul Lo Duca, who has pretty well followed in Mike's footsteps from the Dodgers to the Marlins to the Mets. Both these catchers ~ yep, I have a thing for catchers! ~ have something else in common: they are married to former Playboy Playmates. Although Lo Duca is going a divorce right now, Mike and his bride are expecting their first child in February. I wish him every happiness, but something I just do not understand: why would any man want to marry a woman who shows the world things only her husband and gynecologist should see???

I've been really busy these past few days ~ taking a friend to Alton for physical therapy while getting out the next issue of my genealogy journal and working on PR for the new novel ~ and also looking for a new car before Delores, my 1998 Aurora, expires. :) Anyway, to show you that I haven't forgotten you, here is a picture of my three furry loved ones: 8-year-old Melanie Muffin, 4-year-old Chelsie Pamelyn, and 2-year-old Elly Fae. Melly and Chelsie are 13-pounders, twice the size of their little sister, but Elly Fae is definitely the queen of the household ~ a queen with an inclination to terrorize and bully her older sisters. :)

Today I approved the preview copy of my latest novel, The Wading Place. :) It should be in the booksellers' circuit in about a month. If you want a copy sooner, however, you can order one *NOW* at a *DISCOUNTED* price from the publisher's site: http://www.lulu.com/content/381120. You can also order a copy there in e-book form. If you haven't already read my first novel, The Roommates, you can find it at the publisher's site, too: http://www.lulu.com/content/166874.
(The Wading Place is PG-rated so that my students can read it; The Roommates is R-rated for strong language and adult situations.) Thank you for adding me to your reading list! :)

This one's for you, Janet ~ apparently you were right: Barry Manilow isn't *hip*! :) I have always thought he looks like Joe Montana's older brother. :)

From Yahoo News:
Barry Manilow will take a break from his regular gig at the Las Vegas Hilton to undergo surgery to repair torn cartilage in both hips, his publicist said.

The 60-year-old singer, who has a four-year contract with the hotel, suffers from labrum tears in his hips — a painful condition exacerbated by his high-energy performances, publicist Carol Marshall said in a statement Sunday.

Manilow will continue performing through his appearance at the Emmy Awards on Aug. 27 and will then have outpatient arthroscopic surgery at a Southern California hospital, Marshall said.

Recovery and rehabilitation time is expected to be about eight weeks.
Manilow will miss about 20 concerts at the Hilton, all of which will be rescheduled for the 2007 season.

He is scheduled to return in mid-October for the launch of his new album, "The Greatest Songs of the Sixties."

This is for you, Janet of Lord Celery fame ~ does that make you Lady Celery? :) However, I have one slight little problem with fulfilling all your instructions for blog tag: Besides you, I have only one other friend with a blog, and this other friend would probably hurl me under a bus if I even tried to tag her. :) May I compensate by fulfilling your request twice?

My first contribution:
In 1956 Chamoun, unnerved by the Nasser phenomenon, dashed consensus politics and adopted a one-sided, pro-Western foreign policy. To the consternation of both the Muslim and the Lebanese nationalists, he refused to oppose the Baghdad Pact, a British-sponsored alliance formed to thwart Soviet moves along the USSR's southern flank. He refused to break off diplomatic relations with Britain and France in 1956, after the Europeans attacked Egypt along the Suez Canal to avenge Nasser's nationalization of the waterway. From Lebanon: A House Divided by Sandra Mackey ~ a book I'm really, truly reading for background material for my next novel ~ consequently it's on my desk now.

My other contribution ~ and PR for me:
“I will NOT!” Joe shouted. “I will pay for the baby and be a father to it, but I will not marry Claire Ella. I CAN’T marry Claire Ella.…” From my soon-to-be released novel, The Wading Place.

Since I have no one else to tag, am I *IT* forevermore? :) I'll post the directions here in case anyone else stumbles in and want wants to play ~ 'cause this is kinda fun! :)

1. Grab the nearest book.

2. Open the book to page 123.

3. Find the fifth sentence.

4. Post the text of the next 3 sentences on your blog along with these instructions.

5. Don’t you dare dig for that "cool" or "intellectual" book in your closet! I know you were thinking about it! Just pick up whatever is closest.

6. Tag five people.

Am I the only one who has trouble uploading images to my blogger???

Did you notice the jazzy animated and personalized graphic in my header? I stumbled onto this fantastic site where you can buy personalized graphics to use on your Web pages or in your e-mails and blogs: http://www.patswebgraphics.com/asignatures.html. Actually, I had checked into Pat's Web Graphics previously when I was browsing for graphics for my own Web pages over these past many years, and I have always been impressed with her beautiful work. When I saw that she had branched out into personalized graphics, this fan became a customer. The prices are reasonable, and what I ordered late last night I received via e-mail by early afternoon today. Unfortunately, the animation won't show up in the graphic I am attaching to this post, but it's from the main page of her animated signatures pages, so you can see it in action there along with all her other awesome graphics.

Apparently I'm not the only one underwhelmed by Walt Jocketty's recent trade-deadline deals ~ and the Cardinals' current eight-game skid has done nothing to alleviate my concerns. This is from *Bernie's Bits* by Bernie Miklasz in the Saturday St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

"The sabermatricians are woofing at Cardinals general manager Walt Jocketty for trading Hector Luna for Ron Belliard. Wrote Joe Sheehan of the Baseball Prospectus: 'I still can't make sense of the Cardinals' decision to trade Luna for Ronnie Belliard. The Cardinals got the older, more expensive player, but I think they also got the lesser one. ... Belliard has lost almost all of his speed, and his body - face it, he looks like Lenny Harris. If the Cardinals are hoping to bat Belliard second, they're in for some problems. He's a slow righthanded hitter who puts the ball on the ground and doesn't draw walks. That's a recipe for double plays.' Added BP's Christina Kahrl: 'If there's good news for the Cardinals, it's that Belliard will be a free agent this winter.'"

The Cardinals lost another one ~ after receiving a memo from the superintendent today, I'm already unhappy about the forthcoming school year ~ my printer is throwing a temper tantrum as I try to print my genealogical newsletters ~ so maybe I'll perk up my spirits by sharing a poem with you. Yes, I write poetry, too. :) This one was an honorable mention in a contest hosted by Blue Mountain Arts:

A Message of Love
[c2000, 2006 Vikki L. Jeanne Cleveland]

Did you give your heart to the moon, my love,
To carry on to me?
I felt your love as I gazed last night
At Heaven’s canopy.

Did you reach for the sky and touch a star
And charge it with your love
To shine on me here and warm my night
With endearments from above?

Did you murmur “I love you!” to the breeze
And send it on its way
To touch my cheek and softly breathe
Your sweet communiqué?

Will you love me forever and one day more
Though we must be apart?
Let the heavens bring me your message, love,
Of what is in your heart.

Although Salem is almost stereotypical in its small-town-ness, we do have an unusual attraction in East Lawn Cemetery, the final resting place for several Gypsies.

One of the happier legends about Gypsies is that God had a Goldilocks experience during His creation of man. His first creation was too dark, and that man became the ancestor of Negroes. God’s second creation was too pale, and that man was the world’s first white man. The third divine creation was just right, however, and this perfectly brown man was the ancestor of the Gypsies.

Other Biblical legends are less kind. Gypsies, for example, are charged with being descendants of Cain, whom God outlawed for fratricide and who thereafter became a wanderer and fugitive on earth. Another legend brands Gypsies as “strays of the earth” because they refused shelter to Joseph, Mary, and Baby Jesus as the Holy Family fled from Egypt.

Supposedly they were also bodyguards for Christ, but they were unable to defend him because they drank too much. Later a Gypsy blacksmith allegedly forged nails for Christ’s crucifixion.

Today the name “Gypsy” still conjures unflattering stereotypes. However, Gypsies are remarkable in their devotion to family and to honoring their dead loved ones with respectful and colorful pageantry. Many sites that provide testimony to the Gypsy journey of death and remembrance are within a day’s round-trip from Chicago.

When a member of the Gypsy family or clan is seriously ill, word is urgently sent to all relatives and friends, no matter how far away they may be. Through fixed contact points called vurma, Gypsies can find each other even without fixed addresses.

“Each family always has someone who can contact everyone else in the clan,” said Buck Oulrey, great-grandson of “Gypsy Sam” Joles and his wife, Betsy, Gypsy “royalty” who, in 1891, settled in the small southern Illinois town of Salem.

All who can make the trip will appear at the bedside of the dying loved one. Showing family solidarity is important at this time of impending loss. Gypsies must also seek forgiveness for any past transgressions against the family member or friend who is dying. No envy or resentment should linger in those beginning their journeys to the land of the dead.

In early Gypsy history, touching the body of the deceased was discouraged for fear of contamination. If possible, the nearly departed was dressed in his finest clothes immediately before death. Otherwise, a non-Gypsy, usually the funeral director, attended to these cosmetic details. Some clans plugged the nostrils of the deceased with beeswax or pearls to prevent spirits from entering the body. Rituals such as these have been mostly abandoned by “modern” Gypsies, however.

A tradition that is continued is that Gypsy wakes and funerals are elaborate occasions that often resemble family reunions. Friends and family come from great distances to say their final good-byes. Their attendance is considered a gift to the grieving family.

“All will chip in for expenses if someone has no money for the trip, food, and lodging during the wake and funeral,” Oulrey said.

Gypsies still try to keep a constant vigil over their dead loved one. This custom may have evolved from the old Gypsy superstition of keeping at least three mourners with the casket to guard against the ghost of the dead person visiting a lone watcher if a single companion fell asleep.

Some funeral homes will allow around-the-clock vigils, while others will request limitations in either time or the number of mourners staying with the body.

Larry Rogers of Roger-Atkins Funeral Home in Salem, IL, allows only part of the family to remain with the body overnight during the wake. However, Larry Irvin, owner of Irvin Funeral Homes in Odin and Centralia, IL, has no problem with keeping his funeral home open to all mourners for the duration of the wake and funeral.

“Gypsies pretty well operate their own funeral,” Irvin said.

They have committees to clean, provide food and beverages, transport flowers, and set and arrange flowers and chairs. When Irvin ran low on seating because of the huge attendance, a Gypsy committee hauled and returned the extra chairs from his other funeral home.

After one of Irvin’s lights was broken during a Gypsy wake, not only did the Gypsies call in an electrician to fix it, but they also paid to replace its companion so that the two lights would match properly.

“They were neat and clean and easy to deal with,” Irvin said.

In New York, a funeral director’s assistant, who wishes to be identified only as “Gizmo,” said that Gypsy wakes were “party time” with lots of alcohol, food, and loud music. Gypsy mourners cooked in hibachis even in the viewing room, where the smell of sausage, hamburgers, and pizza mingled with the scent of funeral flowers. Fruits, melon, cookies, and cake as well as bottles of beer, rum, and wine were also there.

Funeral directors were there as late as two in the morning to police the proceedings.

Another Gypsy tradition still observed is that of placing mementoes and other objects in the casket with the body. Irvin said that today such requests are also typical for non-Gypsy families. However, Gizmo reported that money and even credit cards were put into the folded hands of a deceased Gypsy each day of a wake. On the day of the funeral of a Gypsy king, over $5,000 in cash was in the casket with the royal body. The king was buried with the money, oranges, and American Express cards to ease his way in the afterlife.

Elaborate floral pieces are another special way that Gypsies honor their dead.

Paradise Flowers in Salem has been filling Gypsy orders for over two decades.
“We are delivering flowers to the funeral home all day until one in the morning every day of the wake. It’s a revolving door around here,” said owner Pam Deckard.

Even those Gypsies who have already ordered floral pieces will call and order something else when a new idea occurs to them.

“These are not just obligatory funeral pieces,” Deckard said.

She and her staff must work with all the patience, skill, and creativity of those building floats for the Tournament of Roses Parade because Gypsies want meaningful tributes where flowers are used for set work or floral sculptures that in some way represent the lifestyle of the deceased or a special memory shared by a mourner and the deceased.

Food is a favorite theme, food that the deceased especially liked or cooked well for a loved one, or maybe food that was the final meal that the deceased had eaten.

Deckard has had to think of ways to use flowers to depict spaghetti and meatballs; a steak, mushroom, and lobster tail dinner; a three-dimensional cooked turkey with drumsticks; a hotdog; a cherry pie with a piece missing; an oatmeal box; a Sweet’N Low packet; and a can of Diet Pepsi.

Habits are covered, too. Deckard has used Styrofoam cutouts and flowers to sculpt a Skoal can, broken cigarettes, and a bag of Redman chewing tobacco.

She has also created a broken heart, a crawling baby, and a full-sized table and chair.

For a three-dimensional floral house, she used carpet remnants for the floors, Contac paper for wallpaper, and the inscription “Without you our house is not a home.”

“Gypsies are really into inscriptions,” she said.

Another example is a floral telephone that carried the inscription “God called her home.”

The greatest pageantry is preserved for the funeral procession from the funeral home to the cemetery.

Irvin remembers one funeral that was attended by 900 Gypsies in his Odin funeral home—about 200 people fewer than the whole population of Odin. When the first car from this procession reached East Lawn Cemetery in Salem, six miles away, the last car was pulling out of the Irvin lot.

Gypsies are very much aware of the show they are presenting. They will drive their best vehicles, which have been washed and shined for the occasion. To Gypsies, the fact that so many people will stop to view the procession is a sign of respect for the deceased.

The elaborate processions are another tradition with a long Gypsy history.

When Gypsy queen Matilda Stanley died of cancer in Ohio in 1878, thousands of people came by special trains to view the procession, which consisted of 1,000 carriages. In fact, the procession was refused admission at the cemetery gates because it was so long. With so many spectators joining the mourners at the gravesite, the minister had to deliver his sermon from a wooden plank laid over the open grave.

In their earlier history, not all Gypsies were buried in consecrated ground. A Gypsy who died by accident was often buried on the site of the accident. The grave was marked only by a cross of stones. For whatever reasons, some Gypsies were given “surreptitious burials” with only thorn bushes or rose trees planted there to prevent the ghosts of the dead from emerging from their resting places.

A legendary cemetery in northwest Indiana was begun in the 1820s by a band of local Gypsies, who had settled, as much as the wanderers could settle, on a piece of land there. After some trouble with the local townspeople, the Gypsies were given two days to pack up their belongings and leave. Town officials refused to relent even though an influenza outbreak had made many Gypsies seriously ill.

When the deadline arrived and townspeople investigated, they found only a makeshift cemetery. The Gypsies were gone, but they had left their dead behind.

Prejudice gave way to practicality, and the local population made this cemetery their own. Although no Gypsies returned to visit these graves, odd occurrences have since been reported there, occurrences strange and persistent enough to attract an ongoing investigation by a group of ghost researchers known as Shadows of Chicago.

Campfires visible from the street appear, disappear, and reappear although no fire remains are ever found. Balls of blue light chase passing cars and then vanish. Photographs show mist, orbs, and black figures that cannot be reasonably explained.

Today, however, more reverential remembrance is afforded the resting places of Gypsy loved ones. Many clans make annual pilgrimages to the gravesites.

On Memorial Day each year, members of the Joles and Broadway clans from across the country gather in Salem to decorate graves in East Lawn Cemetery with brightly colored floral pieces.

While on a journey from Ohio to southern Missouri during the summer of 1890, “Gypsy Sam” and Betsy Joles and their family had camped within sight of East Lawn. The tidy serenity of the site impressed them so much that when their daughter died in Missouri during the winter, they returned to Salem with her remains to bury her in East Lawn. While they were in Salem, another daughter died and was buried next to her sister. These two small graves marked the beginning of the first of two Gypsy burial areas in East Lawn, which now attracts annual pilgrimages of Gypsy descendants.

Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati, OH, is another site that attracts Gypsy pilgrimages. Gypsies began burying their family there in the 1800s when a local funeral home director extended credit to an indigent Gypsy. Although Gypsy burials in Spring Grove have declined in recent years, many Gypsies still visit the cemetery, especially on Memorial Day.

Gypsies were also buried in St. Joseph’s New Cemetery in Prince Hill, OH.

Paul Erwin, a retired University of Cincinnati history professor, studied Gypsy burial tradition in the Cincinnati area. He claimed that Cincinnati cemeteries were convenient for thousands of Gypsies whose annual north-south migrations routed them through that area each spring and fall.

Funerals and the yearly pilgrimages of remembrance are significant family occasions for Gypsies, who spend enormous sums of money on caskets, vaults, and flowers. A florist in Northside, OH, sold $35,000 worth of flowers to Gypsies for one Memorial Day. The owner of an area auto dealership sold 35 new Cadillacs to Gypsies, who paid cash.

Despite all the pomp and circumstance attending Gypsy traditions of death and remembrance, Buck Oulrey claims that Gypsies are “just ordinary people.”

Ordinary people with extraordinary ways of paying homage to their honored dead.

A headline in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch this morning echoed my feelings about the Cardinals' transactions right at the July 31 trading deadline: "Cardinals Underwhelm with Last-Minute Deal." I hope I'm wrong. However, I can't see that the Cardinals have upgraded that much. Luna for Belliard? Even LaRussa said that Luna could become a "special" player, so why not keep him and give him a full-time opportunity to be special at second base? Luna's offensive numbers for the year aren't so different from Belliard's, and Luna is also a more versatile player in terms of where he can play. As for this Jorge Sosa dude ~ good grief! What were you thinking, Mr. Jocketty? Again, I'm hoping I'm wrong. Dave Duncan has performed some magic with other castoff pitchers, but this particular castoff has had a ground-zero kind of year.

The other part of this worrisome scenario is that the second-place Reds were VERY busy making deals, not only at the deadline, but also before it. They have upgraded a whole lot more than that Cardinals have ~ and the Cardinals' lead in the division is not that secure.

Did I mention that I'm hoping that I'm wrong???