Anastasia Karel
Bio
I’m an archivist by trade, and creator the rest of the time! I love to tell stories about the places I’ve been and things I do.
Stories (9/0)
The Boy From the Other Blanket
Their story begins one night in Bryant Park. A crowd of people are spread out on the green lawn to watch Jaws, and the large screen makes it feel almost like a drive-in atmosphere but in the middle of a city. It’s her first summer experiencing life in New York and she’s in the mood to say yes to everything and every person who comes her way.
By Anastasia Karel2 years ago in Fiction
Be the Hat!
Making Halloween costumes brings me inner peace. For ten years I worked at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and for nine of those years I participated in the Hall’s annual Halloween costume contest. There are no official statistics for winners of this contest, but if you compared my wins to a baseball player’s average, I’d be better than Ted Williams.
By Anastasia Karel2 years ago in Styled
The Great Trenton Earthquake
She swears the bedpost shook. And then, a minute or two later, our dad pokes his head into the room and says, “girls, we just had an earthquake.” This all might have been plausible if we were living somewhere like California in the early 1980s, instead of New Jersey. My sister was no more than three years old at the time, and I was maybe 5; we moved to Pennsylvania in 1984. This story is not about “the great Trenton earthquake,” because there wasn’t one. Instead, it’s about how you convince yourself something happened to the point that it must have happened.
By Anastasia Karel2 years ago in Families
The Adventures of Pete the Raccoon
Pete the Raccoon liked to eat apples. Or at least that’s how I remember it. When I was a little girl, sharing a bedroom with my younger sister, our father would make up stories involving our stuffed animals and Pete’s adventures were always a favorite. Since he was a nocturnal animal, it was only natural that Pete would go off and do things while we slept. Then, the next night, my dad would tell us where he went.
By Anastasia Karel2 years ago in Families
My Orange Scissors
I still have my first pair of scissors. I don't remember when I received them, but it must be before my earliest memories, because I do remember when they were taken away as a punishment for cutting my sister's hair. My parents put them in the top drawer of their tall dresser, much higher than I could reach, and I remember looking up to where they were, desperately wanting them back.
By Anastasia Karel2 years ago in Journal
Game Show Crazy
Game shows, game shows, and more game shows. This is how I spent a lot of time during the quarantine period, when my state was shut down and it was hard to go anywhere for fear of catching COVID-19. Lucky for me, my condo fee includes cable and I had access to the Game Show Network (GSN). If you cut the cord, I’ll include my recommendations for game shows on streaming platforms at the end. Read on and maybe you’ll decide you need to see some of these shows!
By Anastasia Karel2 years ago in Geeks
Pre-owned for the win
I love spending money and buying things. Always have, always will, no matter how many budgeting or other money advice stories I read. It must go back to the old hunter/gatherer instinct: our brains are wired to look for things to acquire, and if we can find something that no one else has, that's a major win!
By Anastasia Karel2 years ago in Lifehack
