The "M*A*S*H" Story

(a.k.a. my 15 minutes of fame)

I've told this story, oh... just a few times over the last 28 years (even more cool to tell now that I live so close to the Smithsonian’s Museum of American History) but now that I have a color scanner and a blog, I figured it was time immortalize it cyberspace…

One of the longest running primetime television shows, M*A*S*H (the show that birthed the term “dramedy”) ran for 11 seasons from 1972-1983. This was my absolute FAVORITE show growing up. I never missed an episode and was glued to the set every week when it was on. I loved the show so much that during a 4th grade art class I made a tin print of a M*A*S*H helicopter that hung on the refrigerator for several years.

In April of 1981, there was a horrible, horrible writers strike that lasted an eternity (okay, it was a few months) that took my beloved M*A*S*H off the air. Heartbroken, I wrote to cast of M*A*S*H, empathized with their plight, pleaded for them to get back on the air as soon as possible and included with my letter the helicopter tin print I’d made years earlier. I wrote a few more letters and then I suddenly got one back…

I wrote back a letter of thanks and then a month later (strike was over and back on the air at this point) I was delightfully surprised to get this package in the mail.

Inside was a wondrous treasure of photos, film strips, projector slides (remember those) of the cast of M*A*S*H hanging my tin print on Colonel Potter’s office wall between the horses and his “grandkids” drawings (I think that made me an honorary grandkid).

Although M*A*S*H was only on the air for another season and a half after that, you can catch several good views of my tin print in seasons 10 and 11 during scenes in Potter’s office.

After the series ended, the M*A*S*H set was moved to Smithsonian’s Museum of American History so, as if having my personal artwork on the M*A*S*H set wasn’t a cool enough claim to fame, I later had my artwork hanging in one of the most famous museums in the world … now sitting comfortably collecting dust in a storage room between Fonzi’s leather jacket and Archie Bunker’s chair, I’m sure.
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|| Pause ||

I've never given much weight to the passing of my birthday... a day like any other day. I don't feel any different than the way I did the day before or from the way I expect I will the days after. It's one more page on the calendar which serves only as a marker of what I have or haven't gotten done yet.

I'm not comfortable being the center of attention so a big birthday party with lot's of people would never be my cup of tea so I feel especially blessed that my husband and kids "get it" and have never subjected me that big horrifying surprise party for my birthday. Of course, I really wasn't at risk of that growing up either since my birthday is so close to Christmas. I was never disappointed to have the recognition of my birth overshadowed by the celebration of Jesus’ birth.

I've never had any hang-ups about my age. I've had a hard life, worked for everything I have and have proudly earned every wrinkle and grey hair. None of which would I trade back for the trials that put them there. God has either had purpose or given purpose to each hard-knock and I am thankful for they have made me who I am.

As I sit here at the end of this day, my 41st birthday, as the clock ticks ever closer to tomorrow, I’d like to click the “Pause” button. Not because I want to roll the clock back and stay 40, not because the birthday was so spectacular I want to preserve it forever, but because tomorrow morning I will go out to breakfast with my mother and tell her that her youngest daughter has cancer. Then I will sit the boys down and tell them their mother has cancer.

I'm good at processing this kind of thing for myself, my course is set, my faith is strong – I’ve been dealing with “logistics” for 4 days…. But I have no idea how to put it into words, the right words, the comforting, confident words that reflect my peace and certainty that all will be fine – as it should be – in God’s way, in God’s timing. Not everyone sees it that way so easily.

Praying for the Holy Spirit to fill me with the right words – pray with me, would you?
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The Christmas "Can Can"

I know for as many people that there are "with me" on this one, there just as many against me (Tracey), but I just love Christmas music. It's one of those wonderful things my husband and I discovered we had in common when we were dating.... Need a pick-me-up in July? Christmas music! Need motivation to clean out your closet? Christmas music! Got the sniffles, a skinned knee, bad day at work? Christmas music!

The only thing that could make Christmas music even better is A Cappella Christmas music – barbershop even. Barbershop quartet music is yet another wonderful thing that brought Edward and I together. So when he caught these guys on PBS last night while I was out, he quickly found them on YouTube so he could share them with me as soon as I got home.

Not only are they talented, but they are hilarious as well. Check out these musical comedians singing the best Christmas medleys I’ve heard in a while - a cappella.





Oh, and I understand they’re going to be here in Alexandria, Virginia on December 21st if anyone was looking for early Christmas present ideas for Edward and I. :-)