Interview: Rasma Raisters
Meet Rasma....
I remember meeting Rasma Raisters, also known as Gypsy Rose Lee, through my pal, Martie Coetser.
It didn't take long for me to fall in love with this lady. She is honorable, supportive, interesting and extremely funny.
Rasma's writing has a diversity ranging from travel to modern fairy tales to poetry. There is a decency, goodness and faith that shines through her work every time.
Join me in reading more about Gypsy Rose Lee:
The times I feel most relaxed are...
.very early in the morning when the day is just beginning and starting at midnight which is the best time for me to get some work done. Everyone is already asleep and I can do what I like and write to my heart's content.
The times I feel saddest are..
I sometimes get a feeling of melancholy in the late afternoon when there's that golden glow in the sky. In the winter it gets me down when twilight appears at 3PM and by 4PM it's pitch black. That makes me feel isolated from the world.
Something I'd like to teach others...
I'd like to teach others how great the Lord is and how it's wonderful to have faith and what a great book the Bible truly is.
My secret passion ... my dream job....
would probably be working with animals in any field.
Most hated gift I ever gave someone ..
I don't remember giving a gift I hated but I do remember long ago giving someone something I had no use for and wouldn't use. Perhaps it was of use to them.
The gift I could have done without ...
was and is a large, black ceramic panther which sits on a book cabinet in my livingroom and collects lots of dust. Does anyone want it and how do I send it?
If you peeked in my junk drawer, you'd be surprised to find ...
of all things a heart shaped bracelet which the love of my life at the time my high school boyfriend gave me. He had it engraved with our names and since I have had it all these years I just hold on to it because every time I happen to come upon it it makes me feel as if the years slip away.
My date from Hades ....
an Arab boy I met while I was at my first job in N.Y.C. His parents owned a Persian Carpet store in Manhattan. So you could say a wealthy catch. lol He invited me to a restaurant where they also had dancing. First of all I had to meet him there, then he arrived and practically right away suggested we leave. I thought he had a better place in mind - he did the nearest motel. So he took me home after I insisted and good riddance to him.
My worst/ or funniest vacation story ...
Worst vacation story? You got it. It was Memorial Day Weekend and you don't go anywhere without reservations. Especially to the beginning of the season so to say at Wildwood, N.J. However my first husband said it was not necessary there will surely be vacant rooms. There weren't. Just his luck that we found one but they stuck us in a lousy basement room of this motel. We were sitting on the bed - there were no chairs - deciding where to go when the fiberboard ceiling fell in. Just on top of the other bed luckily. After that the manager have us a great upstairs room which he had been saving for the Queen probably with a kitchenette at the same price as the disaster room downstairs. This is what saved my first husband's life that weekend. .
A life goal on my bucket list....
getting back to the U.S. and traveling through all of the states.
What I most look for in a friend ....
honesty, sincerity, understanding and a good overall feeling between us. So that is never matters what happens we're always there for one another.
Something I will never part with....
of all things a black, striped Hawaiian shirt which was my father's.
A life lesson I will never forget....
my mom always helped people older than her and I did too. It made them so happy to have someone go to the store for them, to drive them somewhere just simple things that the elderly need help with and it was a great feeling to get their smiles.
The worst part about getting older ....
I don't know. You mean I'm not a kid anymore? or a teen? I know I'm still a rock and roll queen.
A writing lesson I learned the hard way ....
I don't think there was anything to learn from it but I guess the most difficult paper I ever had to put together was at the university as the final paper for my major in marketing. It took like forever to get it just right but in the end it all worked out and I passed with flying colors and got out of university.
My favorite movie and why ....
I have quite a few moview which I like. For me a movie has to make me feel a certain way and then I vote it up. One such movie is a very old one called "I Remember Mama" with Irene Dunn and a very young barbara bel Geddes who went on to become Miss Ellie in dallas. The movie I mention is from 1948 and it always makes me cry because I remember my mama.
What subjects / genres do you enjoy reading about...?
I like all sorts of subjects among them horror - love Stephen King and Edgar Allen Poe, romance - Danielle Steele and also about true stories and history among others and a book that has many different genres in it my all time favorite The Bible.
What would be a subject / genre that you would like to read more about ...?
anything to do with traveling. Enjoy reading about different cities and countries.
Can you take us to a favorite piece of writing on HubPages that does not get much traffic...?
Now that's difficult because they just put hubs on Idle and I haven't had a chance to see which ones. I guess I'd have to mention all the ones I wrote about my parents under True Stories and the ones about Riga under Travel and Places if I got that right.
Please do some digging Maria and let me know what you come up with...
OK, Rasma... my choice, although there was much to choose from, is:
When Your World is Falling Apart
Thank you, Rasma ....
I was honored that you shared your husband and sweet kitty, Sid, with us.
And just as Mickey has his Pixie, you have your soul mate, Martin. I hereby dedicate this Supremes song, "Stoned Love" to you.
Thank you for taking the time to spend some time with us, Rasma.
© Maria Jordan (revised September, 2014)
The Supremes: Stoned Love
Even More on Gypsy Rose Lee....
Comments
That Memorial Day story was a great one with some valuable lessons about planning ahead. I enjoyed meeting Rasma Raisters after reading her posts on facebook. She sounds like a really nice person.
Your interviews are always interesting, and this one is no exception! Enjoyed reading it and rated it up. :) Hope you are doing well.
Aw thanks so much for your comment teaches.
Maria can't thank you enough for this great interview.
Hugs to you both.
Rasma has an interesting lifestyle, great faith, and positive outlook on life. I enjoyed reading about her and believe she is a wonderful person. Thanks for sharing what makes her so special.
Michael thank you for your wonderful comments they are much appreciated. Happy to hear that you enjoy my hubs. Hope you and your family have a great weekend.
Your hubs a "behind the scenes" of each hubber I will treasure. Insight into another wonderful hubber who has shared her love of her sweet mom and dad and our wonderful God.Seeing her beautiful hubs filled with so many different topics brightens my day.Maybe you have the day off and can kick back and rest.After all your hard work on each hub don't forget a little me time. Thanx for caring for so many hubbers and sharing their works.
Thank you so much for your super comment Vellur. It's great to share HP with other great talents like yourself.
Eddy you really are a terrific friend. Always look forward to your great poetry. Hugs.
A wonderful interview on a very deserving friend and fellow writer.
Eddy.
Awesome interview about an awesome hubber. I love her writings. She is a great hubber, generous and kind. Great interview, voted up.
Thank you so much for your wonderful comment Lucky Cats. I agree we do have quite a bit in common. How delightful to hear you still have a keepsake from an old sweetie too. Memories are so precious. Our days and nights have gotten cold rather quickly and we already have degrees in the 30s. Therefore my cat Sid has taken up residence in the kitchen to be near his food and water bowls. He has a large box under the kitchen table and a warm blanket to lay on. He is a happy camper. Let's keep on hubbing. Hugs.
I love this interview! Rasma aka Gypsy Rose Lee has been a kind HP friend to me. Her love for animals and support has meant much. I like this interview because of her picture, her words and heart. I, also, have a keepsake that my sweetie made for me when we were in the 7th grade...a handmade brass little finger ring made from a bolt...with decorations, too. I STILL have it, too. these things are so fun to find, unexpectedly, while hunting for that ever elusive "other" thing. I love the mornings and feel blue mid day, as well....ams are hopeful, young, lively and awake....mid day is kind of a lull. Rasma likes romance and scary reading...I do too! Love suspence and I love romance! I've grown to relate to this writer, even through absences and long periods of quiet. Thank you, Mar and Rasma / Gypsy (love that she chose this name, too)..for a great interview!!!
Thank you so much for your great comment Docmo. You really are too kind but I appreciate it. Love your hubs lots and always look forward to them and seeing your smiling face on FB.
Awesome woman, Rasma, her great role in hubville, her wonderful writing and her constant warm comments have always been a source of delight. Gypsy Rose is an apt name- she is exotic, exquisite and eternally delightful to know. Mar, you're killing me with these great hubs... so rich and nutritious I need to go on a diet!
You're pretty amazing yourself unknown spy and it's a pleasure to know you.
So glad you enjoyed this Genna and thank you so much for your great comment. Glad to hear of someone who also treasures one of her dad's shirts.
(I just returned home after almost two weeks on the road, so I’m a little late, here.)
I love the name, ‘Gypsy Rose Lee,’ and Rasma seems to fit this, perfectly. I’ve only just begun to read her hubs, and what an interesting and talented writer she truly is. I especially like her candor and sense of humor. When I read her answer to what she would never part with, “of all things a black, striped Hawaiian shirt which was my father's,” I understood this so well. I keep one of my dad’s gardening shirts hanging in a hall closet, where I see it every time I retrieve my gardening gloves and things I wear to work outdoors. Thanks, Maria and Rasma, for this rich and interesting interview.
form the start until now, gypsy is one of the best supporter i ever have, she's very kind and amazing woman.
So glad you enjoyed my interview Alastar. Thanks for your comment.
Aw thanks so much Tammy. Love your hubs too. Here's to many more hubs to share.
Vincent thank you so much for your wonderful comment. I am in awe of your sensational poetry and it certainly is an honor for me to follow you too. Here's to many more hubs to share.
Hugs to you all including dear Maria and have a sensational weekend.
I'm pulling up the rear here, when I should have been one of the first to comment on this wonderful interview of a Mucho talented writer. Gyspy Rose Lee has been a follower of mine and leaves me compelling comments on my work, I much appreciate reading them. She is a lover of Poe and she knows that I am as well. She writes beautiful poetry and her story telling is sublime. I am honoured to be called a fellow follower of her magnificent work. This interview has revealed some interesting facets of this brilliant scribe. Bravo to both Maria and Gypsy for sharing her words. Hugs
This is a fabulous addition to your story. Rasma is one of the most creative hubbers I know of. Her poetry is stunning. She is a great person with a pure heart. This is an excellent hub and interview!
Cool interview with Rasma, Nurse mar. We've only recently become followers and I do look forward to reading more of Gypsy's writings; and how very nice to find out more about her thoughts, feelings and life! Up beaut and awe!
Hi Terri. Thanks for the laugh. Too bad I didn't think to pound that Hades date.
Enjoying all the comments here much Maria hugs to you and a great big thanks.
Mar, a great job on shining a light on the beautiful Gypsy Rose. :) Nicely done. I think I woulda given the date from hades a right hook to remember me by. :)
Hi Martie. Thanks for your great comment. Rock and roll is what keeps me movin. Love ya too and sending you hugs. You make every day sunnier when we connect on FB. Here's to more hubbing ahead!
Vinaya the sentiments are the same my friend.
So glad to hear from you moonlake. Have much enjoyed your hubs.
Great hub enjoyed it as much as all the others. Gypsy is one of my favorite hubbers. I love reading her hubs. voted uP!
Maria,your interviewees are the "Pearls of Wisdom." Every time I read a new writer you feature on your page, I remember things I really need to learn from these wonderful people.
Gypsy-Rasma, I have read your works and you have read mine. We have known each other through what we publish on HubPages. I have found a wonderful writer friend in you.
Regards
I so agree with you, Marcoujor, “It didn't take long for me to fall in love with this lady. She is honorable, supportive, interesting and extremely funny.”
Rasma, I can clearly see you as a rock and roll queen. It is so good to know you!
Thank you, Maria, for another enjoyable interview, and thank you too for that link to my soapy, Hubville, where Gypsy Rose Lee called MickeySR a ‘giant boob’. (And to think he made her do that! As you know he wrote the part of the detective called MickeySR.)
Voted up and beautiful!
Hi, Nette. Thanks so much for your comment. It will be a pleasure to get to know you better and read your hubs.
Hyphenbird so glad you enjoyed Maria's super interview. Springsteen's music has always lifted me higher.
Hugs right back to you Nellieanna.
Maria and Gypsy - you're both so gracious! Thank you for the lovely words about me, too! Hugs!!
Any girl who chooses Bruce (my dream hubbie) for a favorite song has to be great. I shall go over to the Gypsy profile and read some great Hubs. Thank you both for a very interesting interview.
Hi Maria. Thanks for the interview. I'm delighted by it. Of course it'll take me some time to read these super comments but I will. Thanks for the videos actually good choice from the Supremes as I feel a little giddy and stoned just reading all of this. lol Love ya lots and sending you hugs from Riga.
Everybody have a great and sunny weekend. Love ya!
Nice to meet you sunshine625. Now that we're following one another I look forward to reading your hubs and getting to know you better.
Car51 my life is rather colorful. So glad you enjoyed Maria's terrif interview. Yes, I do miss my parents lots.
Happyboomernurse Gail so glad you enjoyed this. I had fun with Maria's questions. Those two in that pic my husband Martin and darling Sid are my whole life now.
Bill thanks for your comment. Maria did a great job and you are one of my favorite hubbers too. Always look forward to your articles and videos.
La Thing thanks for the wonderful comment. You're great yourself and I enjoy your poetry.
mckbirdbks glad to hear from you. And yes, if I could I'd travel across the U.S. in a gypsy caravan. Only way to go.
Movie Master so glad you enjoyed Maria's interview. She does them all so well. Love mine so much I'm smiling as I answer everyone's great comments. Looking forward to reading more of your hubs.
Nellieanna - What can I say? Thank you so much for your wonderful comment. Love the way you read your poetry. Looking forward to getting to know you better too. Riga is a lovely city as is Latvia a lovely country but....I was born in the U.S.A. and hope to make my way back. Glad you enjoyed Glory Days that song can always make me want to dance. Martin is a real treasure, love him lots and we still walk hand in hand. Sid he's a real sweetheart of a cat. Wouldn't want it any other way than having my interview published on my mom and dad's anniversary. I know they're dancing up there. Hugs from Riga.
bravewarrior - always want happy, party songs and never one's I don't like.Used to love going down to the Jersey shore hope I'll be able to do it once more. Maria is one terrific and super lady and if anyone can do it it's her for sure.
kashmir56 hope you have a great weekend too. I know Maria made my weekend with this interview. Glad you enjoy my poems and hubs.
Rosemay50 thanks for your comment. Yes, glad that ceiling was just fiberboard and didn't knock us out. Wouldn't have wanted it no other way than on my parents' anniversary. Miss them much.
The Frog so nice to hear from you. Thanks for your comment, much appreciated.
always exploring hugs right back to you and looking forward to getting to know you better too.
Mickey Sr. what can I say partner? Nice to hear from you. Maybe somewhere down the line we may have another chance to work together. Hugs straight to you.
Faith always a delight to hear from you. I'm equally in awe of your wonderful hubs. There is a lot of beauty this side of the world but my feet still want to stray back to the U.S.A. Glad you enjoy my pics. The Bible is what puts my world in order when things are not the way they should be or when I need some quiet time with the Lord. Glad my advice helped. God bless and hugs.
Lord wonderful to hear from you. Yes, I always start with my vote and I mean it from the bottom of my heart. Hugs.
A.A.Zavala thanks for your comment. Always great to hear from you.
Rasma is a genuinely sweet and interesting person as this hub can attest. Interesting interview and insights. Thank you for sharing.
Shame on me! Rasma comments in all of my hubs, and I need to pay her a visit sooner than later. Thanks Maria! Gypsy Rose Lee is a fun friend. "Voted up and useful!" Yeah, that's how she starts her greetings and no one can match her warm heart. Except mom of course!
I have great respect for Gypsy, not only as a great writer, but as a person of great faith, who is not afraid to share this with others, but she does it in such a lovely manner. Gypsy is one of the very first hubbers to greet me here on HP in April when I joined. I just felt a sense of an easy-going spirit and her calmness expressed in her beautiful words, even in her comments. She is a very supportive hubber. She is one of the best poets I have read, and one fantastic photographer too. She is blessed to live in one of the most beautiful areas of the world I have seen (just from looking at her own photos), just right there at her home and surroundings. Just take a look and you will find out and be blessed. I love her faith and my favorite book in the whole world is the Bible too. Her Disney series (grown up style) is just amazing. Gypsy is so kind to even offer advice, as I had mentioned my hour commute to and from work daily, and finding the time to write, and she told me to write down something striking that I might see on my daily commute, and I did. She has a brilliant mind and a beautiful soul. God bless you both here. In His Love, Faith Reaper
:-) hehe
I'm so happy to see my Gypsy receive this well deserved attention - when Martie asked me to contribute a small recurring portion to her Hubville soap opera series, it was making Rasma my partner that gave me my direction and a parallel storyline . . . it's nice, through this interview, to get to know the real Gypsy a bit better. Thanks and good work Maria.
Bravewarrior (Shauna) - neither do I! I look forward to your interview! Mine's sort of mid-October.
She does it 'cuz she's miraculous! - :-)
Gypsy is brand new, we just started following each other this week. I like her humanity toward others, and she writes poetry, now what could be better than that? Great interview Mar..Cyber *Hug*
Gypsy is a sharp cookie and her writing reflects her depth. Nice interview.
The Frog
A lovely inter view with Rasma who is an awesome writer. So nice to choose this date in honour of your parents.
Loved the vacation story and so pleased to hear nobody was hurt.
Thank you Maria for another awesome interview.
I know this, Nellienna. My interview will be published the latter part of October. I don't know how she does it!
Hi my friend, Another great interview with a very wonderful lady and awesome writer and poet. Enjoyed reading all her interesting answers.
Vote up and more !!!
Maria and Gypsy have a great weekend !
BTW - Rasma, how lovely of you to choose this date for publication of your interview here in honor of your parents' anniversary in what was surely dire circumstances!
(Bravewarrior- Maria is not only busy-- but organized. She worked out the intricate details of this series during weeks ahead of publication! :-)
Maria, as always, it's a pleasure to know more about the hubbers we so love. Gypsy, I'm familiar with Wildwood, NJ. That was the "shore" we "went down to" when I lived in Jersey. I also applaud you for turning the "what song makes you want to leave the party" question around. Touche!
You're a busy woman, Maria! How do you do it?
Maria - I just love this interview. My every contact with Rasma has endeared her to me more, Yet I've not been fully introduced. I know her as a most kind and generous follower & worthy writer to follow, which I'm doing OFFICIALLY! I've snuck in to her site and read and enjoyed her hubs and I see her so many places we both visit, including in leaving her gracious comments on my hubs. All the time, I've been thinking I was her follower. blush - - - Now I know I am!
She's all you say, Maria, and all that her other interviewer and admirers say. It's her own words, though, which most truly communicate her vivid personality & deep, caring spirit so accurately!
Oh, my - that 'worst vacation' account is so hilarious, Gypsy, - but I've no doubt it was NOT funny at the time! The conclusion explaining what saved your first husband's life from your fury that Memorial Day would make a funny video or stand-up's bit. haha.
"The Beauty of Riga District" is really lovely. The scenes are such a mixture of nature and history! Your account is informative, like a personal travel review. In my part of the world, our 'history' goes only a bit back till it meets up with the native tribes whose history isn't preserved in cities, buildings & documented events but in such artifacts as have survived, & in the lore, beliefs & crafts of their present-day generations. It's a reminder of how "new" we are here on this continent. Seeing the Latvian place you now call home where your forebears lived shows the timelines from which we Europeans descended elsewhere.
How great to see the picture of your soulmate and beloved kitty. And I like Bruce Springsteen, but wasn't familiar with "Glory Days". For sure, it would keep you partying, Gyspy! And I hope you continue to delight in living and in bringing your own beauty and joy to others!
Another fabulous interview Maria - I have just read some of Rasma's poetry, it's beautiful!
Thank you both!
mar you find the most colorful characters. A bucket list to see every State is a heck of a way to spend your time. Thanks for the introduction to Gypsy Rose Lee.
This is beautiful! Another great lady and another great interview! Loved all her answers.... What can I say, she is wonderful!
Thanks Maria, voting up and awesome!
Another great interview about another of my favorite Hubbers and people. Well done Marie! You really nailed this one!
Great interview that had me laughing and smiling as Rasma's feisty spirit shone throw.
Loved the worst vacation story, life lesson story and sentimentality of the engraved bracelet in the junk drawer.
Voted up across the board.
Gypsy Rose Lee describes quite a fascinating life; her writing topics are so many and varied! Her love for her parents is particularly noteworthy! Thanks for sharing her interview!
Awesome interview! I don't know Rasma, but she sounds like an interesting woman to know. I'm going to follow her now. On HubPages, not follow as in stalk her in an eerie kinda way. Her answers were entertaining. Great job Mar and Rasma!:)
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