Thursday, November 28, 2019

Thanksgiving Dinner

Lynn is vegetarian and Richard is away. No family nearby. So what is one to do about a turkey dinner for Thanksgiving?

Boston Market? Why not? I have a gift card too that will cover it (thanks Mom).

Dinner from Boston Market: sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes & gravy,
corn, bread roll, turkey & gravy with a glass of sparkling apple cider.

Pumpkin pie with Cool Whip for dessert.

Lynn and I first went to St. Joseph's Cemetery to try to figure out the exact spot where her mom, Judy, is buried. The cemetery records show that she is buried to the left of Lynn's dad but we all have thought for years that Judy was buried on the right side. Lynn's aunt, Sr. Pat, gave Lynn a picture showing flowers on a new grave. At first I thought the picture confirmed that Judy was to the left but as we stood in the freezing wind today trying to match things, my best guess is that the picture is actually from Lynn's grandmother's funeral rather than Judy's. So, back to the drawing board.

We stopped at Boston Market on the way home but had to kill time in the Stop & Shop across the street while more turkey was being cooked. That gave me an opportunity to get the cider and Cool Whip. Meanwhile, Lynn found a couple of mystery books in the used book spot.

Earlier I called home and talked with my mom. They are to have dinner at my brother Kurt's home and then return to Elmhurst Drive for coffee and dessert with more family.

The day started out gray and cold but changed in the afternoon to sunny with clouds and blustery cold. Driving on the highway was tricky because the wind was pushing and tugging at my Escape.

And now as the day winds to an end, I am catching up with blog entries.

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Written Thursday 28 November 2019.

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Tom Swift and His Rocket Ship

Cover of my copy of
TOM SWIFT and His Rocket Ship (1954).

Today I finished reading the third (#3) book  of The New TOM SWIFT Jr. Adventures, TOM SWIFT and His Rocket Ship. Last month I read #2.

The copy pictured above is a "yellow spine" edition  or "gold printed" (i.e., third version, published after 1961). I have a another copy of this book which is a first printing with a blue tweed cover and a dust jacket. I read the copy pictured above since it is less rare.

Frontispiece:
"He could easily be spun off into space!"

The book opens with: "Somebody's flying into our restricted area!" Tom Swift cried as an alarm bell broke the midnight stillness of his rocket laboratory on Fearing Island.

The plot summary from the dust jacket says:
The third volume of the new TOM SWIFT JR. series takes the brilliant young inventor into outer space in a rocket ship of his own design. 
On Fearing Island just off the Atlantic Coast, Tom's space craft project attracts the attention of the spies and agents of a foreign scientist whose plan is to rule the world and space. 
Tom Swift's advantage over his competitors is that he has perfected a rocket fuel which can carry his ship into and out of orbital flight. But it takes all of Tom and Bud's ingenuity to outwit the ruthless efforts of the foreign scientist and his desperate gang of henchmen. 
The flight through space makes thrilling reading-the more exciting because you know the details of the flight are scientifically accurate. 
Readers of the TOM SWIFT JR. AND HIS FLYING LAB, the first book of this new series, will recall the message that came in the shape of a meteor-like object falling into the Swift plane enclosure. In this story, another message from the same mysterious source proves very valuable to Tom as he is flying through space.

Sample of the illustrations in the book.

The New Tom Swift Jr. Adventures #3, TOM SWIFT and His Rocket Ship by Victor Appleton II, Illustrated by Graham Kaye was published by Grosset & Dunlap, Inc., Publishers, New York, NY © 1954. Twenty-five chapters are spread over 208 pages with 10 illustrations (see sample above).

Each book in the series is filled with fanciful inventions, many of which later came to fruition.

I'm reading these books because they are fun, mind candy. I like the covers and the illustrations. The writing is obviously pretty corny but enjoyable. A guilty pleasure.

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